The British asparagus job has been thrown into turmoil as poor weather has severely dented the flagship season.
Due to unseasonably cold weather, the British Asparagus season has been delayed by approximately two and a half weeks.
Temperatures this year are well below seasonal averages which has caused the British asparagus crop to produce significantly lower volumes as the crop need soil temperatures of 10°C.
The UK industry moved to brand national media reports condemning asparagus imports an “ uninformed disgrace” and commended the major multiples for supporting the sector.
Reports in the Daily Mail and the Daily Telegraph accused retailers of stocking Peruvian product when British was available, when in reality the market is short of British product.
Adrian Barlow, spokesman for the Asparagus Growers Association (AGA), told FPJ: “As soon as day time and night time temperatures rise again, we will see a return to large volumes of British Asparagus being harvested and full availability of domestic product in the shops.
“The AGA commends the British retail sector for actively supporting and promoting British Asparagus which is widely regarded to be the finest in the world. It is unfortunate that due to the recent cold weather, the British crop isn’t quite ready and British growers have been unable to meet demand.
“We support the multiple retailers’ decision to stock imported asparagus to meet their customer’s needs until British Asparagus becomes fully available. This ensures that retailers have product to keep up with consumer demand and that they maintain shelf space for asparagus which can then be used to merchandise British product as soon as it becomes available.”
The season is expected to run until 20-25 June with volumes down 20 - 50 per cent on forecasts.
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