The increase in the consumption of domestic fruit and vegetables in the UK was top of the agenda as DEFRA minister Hilary Benn toured one of horticulture’s most important research bases.
The Fruit and Vegetable Round Table event, featuring senior representatives from growers, industry bodies, food marketing bodies, independent and multiple retailers, and research organisations, took place at East Malling Research (EMR).
A key focus of the round table event was on how as a nation the UK could increase its average daily intake of fruit and vegetables from the current 2.8 portions a day to the target of five portions a day. According to the government, the current shortfall costs the NHS an estimated £6 billion per year and accounts for 42,000 premature deaths every year.
Benn, secretary of state for DEFRA, took the chance to look behind the scenes at the scientific research being undertaken in Kent, before opening the fruit and vegetable forum.
Benn studied a trial that has made it possible to reduce the amount of water used to grow a tonne of grade 1 strawberries from 70 tonnes to only 10t of water, while also improving the taste and increasing the levels of antioxidants and vitamin C in the berries. The work has major implications, not just for UK growers but also fruit and vegetable producers in Spain, southern Europe and China.
Oliver Doubleday, chairman of EMR, said: “We were delighted to have the opportunity to show the secretary of state and colleagues from DEFRA some of the exciting science being undertaken here.
“Scientific research needs to be at the heart of the debate about how we are able to produce more, reduce our dependence on imports and also persuade more people to consume British-grown fruit and vegetables. We are perfectly placed to enhance production by improving the viability and yields of crops as the climate changes, but also tackling pests while greatly reducing the need for pesticides.”
Professor Jerry Cross showed Benn how EMR had helped to crack the sex pheromone code of the European Tarnished Plant bug in partnership with the Natural Resources Institute at the University of Greenwich, and safeguard the crop for many strawberry growers.
Cross said: “By cracking the code, which has cost the strawberry industry millions of pounds in crop damage over the last 20 years, we can now help improve the profitability of local growers but also reduce the need for broad spectrum pesticides which kill beneficial bugs as well as the ETP pest. Importantly, EMR is now well placed to help tackle similar pests damaging other crops around the world, such as cotton and alfalfa.”
The tour also included the new intensive Conference pear orchard, developed at EMR, in partnership with Sainsbury’s and Chingford Fruit Ltd, with the aim of increasing yields from 20-22t per hectare to 55t per hectare.
No comments yet