Premium-quality UK-grown apricots have been commanding attention in the supermarkets, with small quantities of the crop on sale in selected stores of Sainsbury’s and Marks & Spencer.
Sainsbury’s has rolled out UK apricots under its Taste the Difference brand following a good reception for the fruit among shoppers.
Product technologist Theresa Huxley said new plant varieties and growing techniques have helped overcome the traditional hurdles of apricot production faced by UK growers.
She said: “Our fruit growers are using new growing technology and finely-honed expertise to turn Kent into the English Mediterranean.”
The retailer is hoping the move could herald the start of a new apricot industry in the Garden of England.
However, Will Sibley, the UK agent for French breeder Cot International, said apricots have been trialled all over the country, from Somerset to North Lincolnshire, with promising results.
Sibley said: “We have now trialled several varieties and found Tomcot and Flavocot very suitable for the UK climate - the future looks very rosy for UK apricots.
“M&S will have 50-100 trays. There are never going to be huge volumes but several growers would like to plant a couple of hectares.”
Sibley added that the fruit would lend itself very well to organic production, since it is highly resistant to pests and diseases.
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