The first Picota cherries are expected in stores around June 20, around a week later than last season due to cold weather and some rainfall.
First indications from the Jerte Valley region of western Spain, which produces the stalkless fruit, suggest the crop volume will be slightly down on the previous year, with enough fruit available to meet expectations from the UK market.
Early rain has not affected the crop, so quality remains good at this stage, with good weather forecast in the coming week and a favourable average temperature of 25°C. Growers are expecting to begin harvesting on June 10-15.
Picota has carved out a strong niche in the UK during June and July over the last decade. Annual campaigns have encouraged sales by highlighting the uniqueness of Picota cherries, underlining their provenance - produced by family farmers only in the Jerte Valley area of the Extremadura region - and their protection by Denomination of Origin status, under the Cereza de Jerte Denomination of Origin Regulatory Council.
The promotions also stress that Picota is available for a short season only, has a dark colour, a deep flavour, and is distinct from other cherries because it does not have a stalk.
The 2009 campaign will again focus on these principles, but will also focus on budget, with the message that Picota cherries are, on average, cheaper - up to 50 per cent less - than their stemmed counterparts in store.
The messages will be carried in advertorial articles in women’s, lifestyle and food consumer magazines, and on the food website Delia Online. They will also feature in radio interviews with Foods from Spain director María José Sevilla at the beginning of the season, and other PR activity.
Up-and-coming celebrity chef José Pizarro from Extremadura is on board the Picota campaign this year. He has developed a series of recipes that will be included in an information booklet in packs of Picota cherries in several major retailers. The booklet also features a competition to win a holiday to the Jerte Valley, with runner-up prizes of Pizarro’s new book Seasonal Spanish Food - as well as a money-off offer on the same book.
No comments yet