Plans to build a multi-million pound 50-acre glasshouse site to grow lettuce and ornamentals in West Sussex are being fought by locals, who have raised more than £70,000 towards stopping the expansion going ahead.
Nursery Madestein UK is planning to invest £21.4 million to build four glasshouses, an office building, storage and irrigation facilities and a road at Easton Farm in Almodington, Chichester.
Managing director of Madestein UK, Peter Zwinkels, told the local press he plans to produce lettuce year round. He said: “The demand for lettuces is steady, but the products are changing and we need to create more efficient facilities.”
Zwinkels could not comment further when FPJ went to press, due to the nature of the on-going appeal against the planning permission. An inquiry is set to take place at the end of February.
The West Sussex Growers’ Association (WSGA) commissioned a report in 2009 that showed there was demand for more glasshouses in the area. In the report, former chairman Paul Sopp explained: “With the increased interest in local sourcing and UK food security, there is significant potential for the West Sussex glasshouse industry to expand.”
But local opposition group the Almodington Association argues the number of large lorries in the area will increase, the risk of flooding will heighten and wildlife and local amenities will be affected. It also claims “80 acres of agricultural farmland will be lost” at a time of forecasted food shortage because “you can’t live on lettuce”.
Almodington Association committee member Graham Porrett told FPJ traffic and the scale of the site are the main problems. He said: “We have nothing against growers, lettuce or glasshouses but it’s not a glasshouse it’s an agro-industrial building.”
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