UK: Strawberries looking good this year
There were fears amongst growers that the warm weather of March would continue, which would have slowed growth. However, the bad weather in April has proved a blessing, if not to the wider population!
"We will have plenty of fruit for the Jubilee and Wimbledon, which was a worry a few months ago," said Laurence Olins, chairman of British Summer Fruits, the body that represents over 90 per cent of UK berry growers.
The group said that the majority of British strawberries were rain protected due to polytunnel cultivation.
Mr Olins said: "Twenty years ago the summer strawberry crop would have been decimated by the recent weather. But thanks to two decades of investment in protection from the elements, the entire crop is safe."
He said that the warm March and the cool April will "combine to deliver sweet and flavourful berries." The crop is expected to be 10 per cent bigger than last year’s.
Berries account for around a fifth of all fruit sales in British supermarkets and the UK berry market is worth almost £800 million.
Trevor Gregory, a director at S&A Produce, a large strawberry grower, said that the Diamond Jubilee, the Olympics and the Paralympics will give people “every reason” to eat strawberries this summer.
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
