This year’s exceptional drought that hit most of the United Kingdom, will affect the Brussels sprout. According to Richard Mowbray of the UK Brassica Growers Association, the lack of water in the summer means sprouts have not been able to grow to their full potential: “Normal supermarket specifications are between 18mm to 40mm. This year’s batch will be at the smaller end of that.”
Mowbray said Christmas diners shouldn’t expect any drop in quality from their smaller sprouts, which taste sweeter than their larger counterparts. “They used to be sold as a premium product, as baby sprouts,” he said.
Some 25 per cent of all sprouts in the UK are sold over the Christmas period, although only half of the 750 million sprouts produced a year are eaten, according to the University of Warwick. The British are Europe’s biggest consumers of sprouts.
Source: fpcfreshtalkdaily.co.uk