Norman Collett Ltd is launching home-grown Rubens onto the UK market as a premium apple variety.
The Kent-based supplier has been awarded exclusive rights to plant Rubens in the UK by brand owner Consorzio Italiano Vivaisti (CIV).
Kent-grown fruit will be available in Tesco, Somerfield, The Co-op and Booths from the end of the month.
Rubens is a bi-coloured Gala-Elstar cross, which has a medium sweet taste and crunchy texture that causes the flesh to fracture so chunks come away easily when bitten.
Andy Sadler, Norman Collett’s managing director, said: “We are delighted to be introducing Rubens apples to the UK. The new variety has serious potential to become a market leader and performs extremely well in taste and quality tests.”
Some 100,000 Rubens trees have already been planted in Kent and another 40,000 are due to be planted this autumn. This first UK season will kick off with 10,000 cases and a full crop of more than 1,000 tonnes is expected by 2012.
No comments yet