Preparing the asparagus for dispatch
THE HOERDT FARMERS' COOPERATIVE
1891: the Société des Planteurs d’Asperges
At the end of the 19th century, economic hardship had increased and the prices offered by asparagus buyers no longer covered operating costs. Many farmers thought about giving up growing asparagus altogether.
In 1891, at the instigation of Pastor Heyler and Chrétien Maechling, the future mayor of the village, a group of 28 members founded the Société des Planteurs d’Asperges (Society of Asparagus Planters).
The cultivated area however, only amounted to about ten hectares. The sale of the harvest was organized in Strasbourg where a permanent stand was set up in Les Halles (the covered market).
At the end of its first year of existence, the Society had 35 members ; in 1900, about a hundred, and in 1935,
more than 320 members.
1923: an agricultural cooperative
For many years, asparagus was delivered unwashed and in bulk to the Hirtzenwürt farm on Rue de la République. There, women would bundle part of the harvest and most of the production would go to Switzerland and Saarland. In order to ensure the sale of asparagus, 180 asparagus growers joined forces to create an agricultural cooperative in 1923. It became the Coopérative des Planteurs d’Asperges de Hoerdt (Hoerdt Asparagus Growers’ Cooperative) in 1947. Asparagus that was not immediately consumed was delivered to the canneries in Strasbourg and Schiltigheim. At the end of the 1950s, the cooperatives of Hoerdt and Argenteuil forged closer ties; a competition was organized jointly during the asparagus festival. In 1967, the merger with the Coopérative Laitière (Dairy Cooperative) gave rise to the Coopérative La Tour, which was then set up on rue de la Tour and became one of the most dynamic Alsatian cooperatives. As its activities multiplied, the lack of space forced it to construct new buildings at the eastern end of the village.
Today: the Alsace Agricultural Fruit and Vegetable Cooperative
On August 17, 2005, the Coopérative La Tour, now in its new premises on rue de la Coopérative, founded the
“Jardins du Ried” commercial entity. When the Coopérative La Tour merged with the Lampertheim Asparagus Growers Cooperative on April 1 2010, the cooperative was renamed the Coopérative Agricole des Fruits et Légumes d’Alsace Hoerdt-Lampertheim (Hoerdt-Lampertheim Alsace Agricultural Fruit & Vegetable Cooperative).
Producers in Hoerdt and surrounding areas continue to deliver asparagus and various market garden produce to the cooperative.