Research into strawberry tray plants by the Irish Agriculture & Food Development Authority, Teagasc, will help boost yields and allow Irish growers to reduce their dependence on imported strawberry plants, according to leading soft-fruit specialist Dr Eamonn Kehoe.
Speaking at the National Berry Seminar in Carlow last week, Kehoe said that knowledge transfer from the research would allow Irish growers the opportunity to supply high-quality strawberry plants for the full length of the Irish season.
“Tray plants can produce between 10 and 20 per cent more large fruits than bare root plants, reducing picking costs substantially,” he said. “Irish growers have responded by investing in new glasshouses to be able to provide fresh fruit for a longer season.
“There is also the added bonus of possibly exporting these plants to other European strawberry growers in the future,” Kehoe predicted.
Irish consumers are now eating £28 million worth of strawberries each year, with an increasing proportion being produced in Ireland.
The Irish soft-fruit industry has grown by 190 per cent in the last decade alone and the sector has proved to be very resilient during the global economic downturn.
Most of the fruit grown is for consumption in Ireland but about 15 per cent is exported to the UK every year.
“The production of Irish strawberries is now over 5,500 tonnes annually and is worth an estimated £17 million,” Kehoe continued.
“Investment in technology such as glasshouses, tunnels and the use of new technology in strawberry plant production have lengthened the Irish production season.”
