There are not many times when an item of fresh produce becomes fashionable beyond the restaurant trade, and even five years ago I have a feeling that most consumers associated rocket with Guy Fawkes celebrations, rather than an option in the salad bowl.

But since then, it has progressed from being described as “wild” to what I must assume is the domesticated version. The product now arrives washed and unwashed, and the latter is the case at Tesco, with a 60g resealable bag priced at 69p.

There may still be consumers out there, however, who are not sure of the taste. Perhaps with this in mind, Waitrose is now describing different salad tastes, with rocket defined as “peppery”, watercress as “strong”, baby spinach as “mild” and beetroot as “earthy”.

Meanwhile, the choice of salad mixes continues to expand almost daily, so an exact definition describing the basic constituent parts is almost impossible. However, in its Classic range, Sainsbury’s seems to have come up with a Complete Salad at £1.99 for 220g. This comprises 36 per cent salad leaves (romaine, Green Batavia and lamb’s lettuce), 18 per cent cucumber, 18 per cent cherry tomatoes, 14 per cent carrots, five per cent radish and nine per cent chive dressing.

On the fruit counter, it will be interesting to see to what extent the various hybrid varieties eventually take over from traditional stonefruit. In some cases, they are also filling the odd seasonal gap - evident particularly with apricots. However, there are differences coming through in Marks & Spencer’s new Perfectly Ripe range. Flown in from the US at £3.99 for six fruits, Black Velvet is a dark-skinned apricot doing exactly what its name implies.

In terms of soft fruit, the time has arrived when raspberry volumes are building up. Golden varieties have already been seen on the shelves, but Sainsbury’s has taken the concept a stage further by identifying new varieties. Driscoll’s Estrella is now grown in the UK and supplied in this instance by Salmans Ltd, at £1.99 for 150g.

My self-imposed brief is to assess what I find on the retail shelves, generally confined to fresh, rather than processed, products. There are, however - just for a change - the odd times when kitchen appliances make an appearance in this column. Just the present for the chef who has everything, Waitrose is stocking - if one is prepared to invest £5 - a strawberry huller provided by Oxo.

Meanwhile, the grocery battle continues, with the discounters continuing to make inroads with the help of the economic climate. Aldi, for example, is promoting its Super Six on TV, choosing half a dozen lines of fruit and vegetables every month, all priced at 49p. At the moment, this includes a medium/small Extra Sweet Costa Rican Agromonte Gold pineapple, described as “world premium” on the tag. The label is also designed to appeal to conservationists, as it is additionally Rainforest Alliance certified.

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