While the produce industry has now spent several months debating whether airfreighted organic imports should have a future in the UK or not, it is all too easy to forget that at consumer level, that sort of controversial topic is only really starting to enter hearts and minds.

A BBC news programme last week featured a short bulletin about the impact a potential ban on imports could have on the livelihoods of a number of Kenyan vegetable farmers. The item was brief, but displayed a certain compassion for the predicament that such growers now find themselves in. The question is, what was the reaction of the several million people that no doubt saw that report, and will the Soil Association’s decision on the future of airfreighted organics take this into account?

The Fresh Produce Consortium’s draft response to the Soil Association’s green paper this week insists that any restriction on the range and volume of fruits and vegetables available in the UK could only serve to damage the industry - and will surely defeat its numerous attempts to rekindle the nation’s interest in fresh produce.

But while the industry is aware of both sides of the coin, perhaps we must now help consumers wade through the quagmire of conflicting evidence and develop their own opinions about the possible impact a ban could generate. After all, aside from the growers themselves, it is arguably they who will be most affected.