Ken Oldroyd, known to many simply as the Rhubarb King, has died at the age of 82.
The founder of the Yorkshire Rhubarb Growers’ Association, in 1967, Oldroyd was at the forefront of efforts to salvage the forced rhubarb industry in his native county, by bring growers together as a group to overcome logistical issues.
He was an adviser for 11 years to the Stockbridge House Horticultural Research Station, and in 1995, he was awarded the Harlow Carr Medal for services to the rhubarb industry.
Daughter Janet Oldroyd Hulme continues to be a leading light in the rhubarb industry, as director of Oldroyd & Sons. She said: “I am proud to be his daughter and promised to continue the work he started - the battle to save the crop and local heritage industry he so loved, Yorkshire forced rhubarb.”
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