Coming through my mail box this week have been some pretty impressive statistics concerning the carrot, namely that the UK produces a sizeable one million tonne crop. I was going to say humble carrot, but nothing could be further from the truth.
According to information provided by Fresh Growers, a co-operative set up only seven years ago with a £15 million turnover, sales of the Chantenay variety have been going through the roof to the point where I understand that the co-op has even had difficulty fulfilling orders.
From a modest 2,500t in 2001-02 to 8,000t last year, and a target of a 60 per cent year-on-year increase by June, it seems the sky is the limit. I gleaned that next year it will be up to 18,000 tonnes.
But, how come?
Chantenay carrots, which owe their origins to France, are not new. I remember them being sold in Covent Garden in the 1960s.
One obvious reason is that the multiples have at last taken them to their heart, which is certainly good news for Fresh Growers as it is growing the majority of the crop.
It is of course far more than simply re-branding. What appears to have happened is that the short, stubby variety has been reinvented through a combination of hard work and enhancing both flavour and yield. The various microclimates of the UK have been played to best advantage and there is virtually year round continuity.
Much the same of course could be said for many crops, but, when reinventing the wheel, the group has taken the bold step of carrying out its own direct public relations campaign. The concept of course is not new, but more usually associated with larger UK crop associations, rather than an individual producer.
While modesty has not revealed what Fresh Growers considers to be a significant investment, the co-op is prepared to admit that the cash, like so many other promotions undertaken by the industry has not been spent via its multiple customers. It is now on the way to creating a sexy product with a multiplicity of uses beyond the carrot’s traditional boiled beef image to woo first-time buyers.
Consumers may not know much about the finer details of the brassica and root crops they buy, but they are concerned that they taste good. I suspect Chantenay is far easier to present on the retail shelf as a premium-priced product than its much larger counterparts that usually finish up looking rather like a jumble pack in a poly bag. That too must help when it comes to giving the diminutive root a separate identity.
At a time when traditional products are often under pressure for shelf space, maybe there is a lesson to be learned: that all is not doom and gloom.
