All articles by FPJ Staff – Page 134
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ArticleVegetable sector mourns loss of British summer
A wash-out summer has brought the UK vegetable industry a multitude of problems. Low light levels have affected both the yield and quality of summer lines, while demand for less abundant winter-type vegetables has increased. Elizabeth O’Keefe reports.
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Brown looks back on 10 years in fresh produce
Martin Brown left his role as managing director of Greenery UK at the end of the summer, to take up a career in the home entertainment industry. He reflects on a decade in the produce industry with Laura Gould.
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Transport rises to top of Paris agenda
More than 32 million tonnes of products pass through the city of Paris every year, and their delivery uses 15-25 per cent of
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Return to rigid pricing on cards
Pricing mechanisms have always been something of a mystery to anyone outside the industry, although the ideal of balancing
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Retail can’t take blame for this one
The retailers have come under fire this week from the National Consumer Council for promoting an abundance of sugary and fatty
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ArticleThe great Cape
The last decade has thrown up some significant changes and challenges for Capespan UK, and scooping the FPJ Importer of the Year trophy at this year’s Re:fresh awards was a fitting tribute to the firm’s continual development work in that time. Laura Gould visited the company at its quayside facility in the Port of Sheerness to find out more.
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ArticleDeliciously helpful for Yorkshire produce
Yorkshire is home to a fair amount of local production and two of the major multiples as well as four wholesale markets have their roots in the region. This week, the FPJ team turns the spotlight on the county, and over the next 12 pages, finds out that those roots are still spreading.
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ArticleOur St James’s palace
Bradford has its very own thriving hub for fresh produce in the shape of St James’s Wholesale Market, where traders have come together to create a unique and diverse offer with traditional fruit and vegetables alongside more exotic specialist products. The tenants are looking forward to the opportunities that the long-awaited regeneration of the city will bring, but the realisation of the large-scale proposals is still some way off. So how are the traders building their businesses in the meantime? Anna Sbuttoni reports.
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ArticleMixed bag dogs northern hemisphere season
Fortunes have been variable for European stonefruit producers this summer, with Mother Nature conspiring to make life as tough as possible at every available opportunity. However, UK importers have mainly been able to weather the storm. Laura Gould reports.
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Packhouse solution for Griffin & Brand
In this month’s look at the effect of information technology on the fresh produce industry, Kent fruit importer and packer Griffin & Brand installs a Marco packhouse solution, and Northern Ireland fresh-cut and potato specialist Wilsons Country increases its capacity with a Packaging Automation tray sealer.
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Shoppers cash shortage helps retailers to cash in
Only the consumer tracking from TNS and the multiples themselves will give an indication as to whether shopping habits are
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Why the produce path is well paved
We berate ourselves for an inability to attract youngsters into this industry and worry that the future generation of fruit
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ArticleTowers of strength
Mid Kent Growers and Norman Collett look forward to the new English season in the belief that both their own growers and the industry at large are in a position of strength.
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ArticleTotal wholesale
The creation of Total Produce was inarguably a key moment in the evolution of the UK wholesale sector. Twenty months into its existence, the group’s commitment to the wholesale markets remains as firm as ever, while purchases of companies outside the market environment have increased its regional presence. The company has steered clear of major activity in London to date, but a quiet revolution has been taking place at its operation in Scotland’s first city. In the first of a series of articles on the structure and strategy of Total Produce’s UK wholesale business, Tommy Leighton visits its Edinburgh facility.
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ArticleRisk aversion
With escalating food costs and supermarket price wars making headlines on an almost daily basis, the concept of food security has shot to the top of the agenda for both government and media in recent months. But how much of a risk does the notion really represent to a wealthy nation such as the UK? And what can be done to mitigate its impact in years to come? Laura Gould investigates.
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ArticleRecruiters work smarter to beat crunch
Securing the right person for a specialist job in the fresh produce sector can be an exact science that takes time, effort and investment. As the current economic climate continues to throw up challenges, Doris Lee Butterworth interviews fresh produce recruitment agencies about their upcoming plans.
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ArticleAllium alert
Growing and harvesting conditions for both onion and garlic crops in the UK are signalling a healthy season, but if the rain continues to fall the picture could change very quickly. It is now a waiting game. Elizabeth O’Keefe reports.
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ArticleNo overhang, lower volumes, what could possibly go wrong?
It makes a nice change to report that the apple industry seems set fair as the northern hemisphere takes over the reins for another season. Industry collaboration has helped the annual switch become far less blurred by oversupply, writes Tommy Leighton.
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Schools backed by USDA
In this month’s round-up of events across the pond, a significant uplift in funding is announced for a Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program for schools across the US and the Produce Marketing Association honours Nunhems’ Intense tomato.
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Don’t discount the discounters
I get the feeling that there must be a lot of hard thinking going on between category managers, multiple buyers and their