“This year the Cornish brassica offer is all about quality and consistency of supply,” says Russell Crowe, Sainsbury’s senior buyer for brassicas. “There has been excellent availability from Cornwall and this has allowed the store to have 98 per cent UK cauliflower throughout the winter season, starting in November.
“We are now seeing the Cornish brassica season extend slightly with a wider portfolio of products. Last year we were able to start the new season UK cabbage lines more than two weeks earlier than normal. This reduced dependence on imported produce has enabled us to have UK- grown produce on our shelves.”
Sainsbury’s is now selling a wide variety of Cornish produce including cauliflower, Savoy cabbage, pointed cabbage, cauliflower, purple sprouting broccoli and courgettes. “This has placed Sainsbury’s as one of the multiple leaders in Cornish marketing,” says Crowe. “Sainsbury’s also supports Cornish King marketing on cauliflowers, spring greens and potatoes.”
Cornish producers are well aware of the importance of continuity, and in recent years have focused their efforts into achieving this goal. “We are working hard to develop production in this respect, and have expanded our range with more varieties,” says Univeg’s marketing director, Grahame Ball.
Cauliflower is a substantial part of Univeg’s business and despite a late start in November there has been good quality and supply ever since. “In some ways the late start was beneficial because the plants had more time to grow,” says Ball. “This resulted in a strong root system and good quality curds. Lincolnshire also had a late season this year and so there has been dual supply through November and December.
“In Cornwall the crop is planted from June onwards, and although it was watered in nicely, the plants didn’t develop as quickly when the weather became drier,” Ball explains. “Since Christmas, we have experienced intermittent cold snaps but it has been mild as well and that has been beneficial for the crops. Our January variety, Alpen, has come on stream in very big volumes in the last two weeks. There has been a wide interest in it and good sales, so it is not the problem it could be.”
Traditionally, says Ball, French cauliflower is prevalent at this time of year, but now that there is good quality Cornish product available, buyers are choosing that.
Production in Cornwall does have its advantages, particularly compared to other growing regions in the UK - the Gulf Stream is responsible for warmer temperatures and the more moderate climate is ideal for brassica production. However, a change in the weather can happen very quickly, says Ball, and it is impossible to forecast ahead. “Although the cauliflower season is progressing well to date, it is very difficult to predict what will happen in the coming weeks,” he says. “Despite the late start the most important thing is that the crops are back in sequence. This time last year there was a cold snap, although it affected the South East more than it did Cornwall. But if temperatures fall here then production could be disrupted.”
Green cauliflower, Romanesco is a relatively new product for Univeg, produced in both its large head form and a baby version (70-90mm) for twin packs. “We are hoping to expand on this and to be able to grow later in the season,” says Ball. “Usually the season finishes in November but it has now gone on until January, thereby reducing the need for imports.”
With a wide and increasing portfolio of products it is important to be realistic about the growth of the market as a whole, says Ball. “If we took the whole-head market by itself, there has probably been a reduction in sales, however overall I would say that the outlook is bright. Brassicas do lend themselves to the prepared market.”
There are currently two exciting factors to Cornish brassica production, says Mark Sutherland, sales manager for vegetable seeds at Nickerson-Zwaan. “The first is the unique climate that means the season can be extended on cauliflowers and cabbage, giving better uniformity of production, and the second is the fact that UK retailers are increasingly looking to bridge potential supply gaps by sourcing Cornish cauliflowers for an extended season.”
“Tesco has really looked after us in Cornwall this year,” says Greville Richards, owner of Penzance-based Southern England Farms. “It has stuck beside the Cornish grower and programmed in good supplies of cauliflower. If we do run short in Cornwall it is usually at Christmas time and then French product will be chosen instead, but so far we are on track. There was a slight hiccup for autumn varieties that were not keeping as well as they might and this was down to mixed climatic conditions that meant the produce grew too fast. Despite this, the season started on time.”
Southern England Farms has tripled the amount of cauliflowers it grows for Tesco since last year. “That has helped us 100 per cent,” says Richards, “and has really helped our business move forward. In the past 12 months we have been able to take on key staff including a technologist and a production manager. We have the same view of Sainsbury’s because they have helped us tremendously.”
Southern England Farms now grows brassicas for 12 months a year and in the summer, production is moved further north. “We have also taken over a new farm which is an untapped area with fresher fields and more land,” says Richards.
In addition to supplying UK retailers, Southern England Farms has started to export cauliflowers to an unnamed foreign supermarket. “They have visited us twice in the last year and have been very pleased with the produce, which for them has replaced Spanish product,” Richards says.
Spring greens have been slower than usual this year. “The problem was that there was a longer season in the north because of the drier weather,” says Richards,” and so supplies built up. We also produce courgettes and new season cabbage under polythene and both are going very well.
“We put a lot of effort into the new season pointed cabbage and that has become a very big seller. We started three years ago and harvest as early as the first week of April. With new technologies and new varieties, we’ll be looking for a record year at the end of March - which is three months early and has narrowed down Spanish supplies.
“Cornwall is ideal for brassica production in many ways, it has a mild climate and very few frosts but in addition to this, Cornish production has also progressed. Growers are much more professional than they used to be. We now use agronomists, and packing is also of a much higher standard.”
The attention of the retailers would undoubtedly bear this out. Tesco’s technical manager for vegetables, Tim Pratt, says: “We support Cornish product wholeheartedly and this winter in particular Cornish brassicas have performed well. Tesco is passionate about UK produce and does everything it can to support UK growers. Richards has been doing a phenomenal amount of cauliflowers for us this season and we do source a great deal of produce out of the Cornish region.”
Varietal improvement and better methods of growing have improved the quality of produce all round, Pratt continues, and one initiative that has already seen good results is growing less cauliflowers per hectare, which has already resulted in a better-quality product.
“Cornwall has become a major market for us in the UK,” says Sutherland. “Part of the success for the Cornish industry is that they’ve managed to develop their approach and have embraced category management - what is happening down there is extraordinary.”
BRASSICAS BRED TO LAST
Nickerson-Zwaan has been working to prolong the Cornish brassica season with a range of new products. “In the last three to four years Cornish growers have managed to extend the season for Sweetheart cabbage until December,” says sales manager for vegetable seeds, Mark Sutherland, “so we are now investigating the possibility of extending the season even further.
“The un-named variety, 15-806 is an example of a new pointed cabbage, which is being developed as a later Duchy-type. It is currently being trialed on selective sites and at Duchy college in Cornwall. If it is successful it will be launched in 2006. It needs to have high levels of cold tolerance and resistance to bolting so that it can be pushed as far into winter as possible, making it a secure winter variety.”
Cutting down on imports is an aspiration of many UK supermarkets now, says Sutherland, and there is much potential for extending the season on a number of brassica lines. “We are in the process of launching two new varieties of Savoy cabbage, One variety, 14-306 is an Alaska-type and can be harvested up until Christmas. The second, Tourmaline is a Siberian-type and is for post-Christmas harvesting.
“One of the key problems in Cornwall is the fact the climate is mild and wet,” Sutherland continues. “This results in various pests and diseases such as Ringspot and Xanthamonas which are both prevalent in such climates. These two new varieties also have improved resistance to fungal and bacterial disease.”
Cauliflowers make up a substantial part of the Cornish brassica portfolio and in association with Vilmorin, a French breeding company Nickerson-Zwaan has created a trio of new varieties including Clovis and Ourasis. “These are generating a lot of interest,” says Sutherland. “We are gearing ourselves up to replace imports from France and Spain.”
BENEFITS OF APPLICATION
In the last few years farmers throughout the UK have seen the benefits of applying calcium to their crops in the form of the Hydro Agri product, Calcium Nitrate.
The product supplies water soluble calcium and fast acting nitrate nitrogen to the crop immediately, and is in a free-flowing granular form that can be easily spread to 24 metres or applied down the spout at planting.
This product is particularly applicable to Cornish growers, as it can be applied in dry conditions without the risk of scorching brassica crops. In fact when the crop is in a stressed condition the role of calcium is important because it helps the crop alleviate the situation.
Cornish growers are already well aware of the other benefits of Calcium Nitrate in combating Tip Burn, internal browning and in the continuing battle against the disorder Clubroot. In giving the crop an adequate supply of calcium this also aids the uptake of other important ions such as potassium and magnesium and in particular Boron which is also important in helping to control clubroot in brassica crops. It is for this reason that Hydro has developed Calcium Nitrate plus a Boron product called Nitrabor that is now available, helping growers to achieve a healthier crop.
Hydro has a full range of fertilizer products available to the Cornish vegetable grower including Compound and Complex Base Dressings, Liquids and a comprehensive range of solid Top Dressings.
In Cornwall Hydro has a purpose-built facility at Falmouth for import, blending and product storage.
