Worldwide Fruit will have first UK production of Taylor's Gold pears in supermarkets this season and is also looking into potential new varieties of green apples to rival Granny Smith and Golden Delicious.
Following the successful launch of Jazz, Drew Reynolds, chief technologist at WWF, reveals that there are now 10,000 trees of New Zealand’s Taylor’s Gold, the russeted pear similar in shape to a Comice, being planted by WWF members.
"We expect the first fruit to be in selected multiples this season," said Reynolds.
The quality of the crop on the original trees under trial on Clive Baxter’s farm at Coxhill, Kent is looking good. Baxter is particularly interested as he has been trialing several other varieties including old fashioned cultivars such as Black Worcester, Merton Pride, Louis Bonne Jersey and Fountaine d’Autumn. Baxter is evaluating each for yield, shape, colour, skin finish and taste before making a decision about commercial planting.
On the same site Reynolds is preoccupied with green apples and he feels new varieties may gain shelf space from old favourites such as Granny Smith and Golden Delicious.
"It would have to be something special and cosmetically perfect to compete," admitted Reynolds. "Previous UK trials to achieve russet-free fruit showed it to be very difficult."
Under surveillance are Moonglo - an Imperial Gala and Cormandel Red hybrid - and Green Star, bred from Granny Smith and Delacor. Another from Davodeau is HY32.2 with an attractive pink-orange blush.
However, he claims that specialist fruit grown on the Continent in areas such as Limousin and the Alps are becoming more expensive to produce at a time when supermarkets are increasingly price conscious.
"Buyers are already looking at other sources in the enlarged EU," said Reynolds.
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