A decade ago, the average strawberry sold would be the size of a pound coin. Now, it is the size of a golf ball. Asked why he believed people wanted bigger ones, S&A Produce group managing director Peter Judge said he thought it was a trend. He explained that their fruit increased by about a third in size over a decade. S&A Fresh Produce has spent 10 years developing the Lady Emma variety - larger than most strawberries grown when production started on Brierley farm in Herefordshire 20 years ago.
The judge added: "It originally started genetically probably 10 or 15, 20 years ago when Californian genetics came into Europe. Now what's happening is the European breeding programs have taken those genetics and are moving them forward by crossing them with other varieties to create new strawberries."
Speaking at the company's farm near Leominster, Judge said there had been a "massive step forward over the last 10 years of both British growers taking on board new growing technology... but also genetic development."
Source: bbc.com
