Sales boost for robust salads

The bare figures hardly paint a picture of a category that has struggled with some of the worst weather in recent memory.

Overall salad category value is up 6.1 per cent in the past year, with almost £100 million having been added, figures from Kantar Worldpanel show. And volume increases have been similarly solid, with 4.2 per cent more – some 25,000 tonnes – sold to 30 September.

Part of that sales increase can be attributed to a rebound after the

E. coli crisis hit the European sector in early summer 2011, and consumers are now buying more per trip.

All salad sectors bar cress have seen growth this year, with tomatoes rising 4.3 per cent in value.

The lettuce sector, perhaps surprisingly given the summer washout, has also performed well, suggesting consumers defied the weather and continued to buy throughout the Jubilee and Olympics.

“This summer has certainly been unpredictable weather-wise, which has been challenging at times for the industry, but the category can hold its head high,” says Florette commercial director Sandy Sewell. “Over the later summer months the weather has been milder, and this is reflected in data from the last 12 weeks, which shows a 12 per cent growth for prepared salads.

“The climax of our landmark summer of sport has a role to play in the category’s positive performance, as consumers celebrated with meal occasions that were perfect for bagged salad – group parties, BBQs and alfresco dining.

“Further category growth will be realised by increasing frequency of purchase, as penetration for the Florette brand sits steady at around 30 per cent currently.”

Sewell adds that Florette’s Bags of Feelgood campaign has delivered increased brand awareness, and cites research showing some 42 per cent of consumers saying they would either buy Florette more often or try it for the first time as a result of the advert.

The availability of salads over the coming months could well be affected by the weather in key Spanish growing regions. According to Quique Oliver at Agriveg, heavy rainfall caused flooding in the Lorca area two weeks ago. “A lot of lettuce, iceberg and other varieties as well as broccoli, which was only just planted or just on the point of being cut, was lost,” he explains.

“Things will start to get back to normal at the end of the month. Many growers really need this season to be a good one if they are going to stay in the sector.”

That concern is echoed by Fernando Gómez Molina, secretary general of Proexport, the association of grower-exporters in Murcia. “Floods in the area of Pulpí and Lorca two weeks ago have probably affected about 10 to 15 per cent of the annual production of various types of lettuce, broccoli and artichoke, but about 25 per cent of the output for the first three months of the season,” he reports.

“Fortunately, this is not enough to jeopardise the season or supply to our major international clients, but some growers have been very hard hit. This has effectively redressed any imbalance in supply and demand that we have seen in previous years.”

And he stressed that news of crop losses should not leave customers fearing a shortfall. “We are going to Fruit Attraction in Madrid this week to meet customers and give reassurances to the marketplace that we do indeed have enough product to meet demands.”

Meanwhile in the Campo de Cartagena region rainfall has proved beneficial in replenishing scant water resources and benefiting crops. Campo de Cartagena is a major capsicum production area growing under plastic tunnels, and in Aguilas and Mazarrón, where a lot of Murcia’s tomatoes are grown, output is looking similar to last season or possibly even slightly more.

It all proves that while it helps enormously, the rain is not the only factor affecting the trade. Sewell concludes: “At this time of year the industry starts looking ahead to 2013 and we are no exception.

“We are looking forward to building on the success of 2012 and helping to grow the category further – and we have big plans in place to do so.”

FENLAND FEAST

Fenland celery might still be a niche crop, but availability is widening to the London markets as chefs switch on to the product’s benefits. Michael Barker reports

There’s real momentum behind Fenland celery at the moment. The product, which is grown in black peat soil in the Cambridgeshire Fens around Ely and Littleport, has received positive headlines lately on the back of an application for Protected Geographical Indication status.

Fenland celery is sold in Waitrose from October to mid-December, and now the crop has received a further boost by making a comeback on the London markets.

P&I Side Salads and other selected caterers are stocking the heritage winter variety this season at New Covent Garden Market, with the crop billed as ideal for discerning chefs who are interested in the story behind their products.

Certainly Fenland celery has an interesting history, starting out in the 1800s as an artisan product grown only for the London Christmas markets. It was brought to London by rail from the fields near Ely, with the cold, dry and frost-proof environs of Old Covent Garden deemed to be ideal for storing the crop.

“The way that Fenland celery is grown gives it a unique nutty flavour and it is paler in colour than standard celery as the soil is banked up around the base, which has a blanching effect,” says Anthony Gardiner, marketing director at growers G’s Fresh. “It’s a really delicious vegetable that would make a great addition to any winter menu.”

The product has an unusual harvesting method, making it particularly labour-intensive. The crop is harvested by hand using a specially shaped knife – a complex operation due to the fact that banked earth first has to be loosened using a machine, with the celery then carefully cut to retain plenty of the root.

And the complexity of the growing process means it is still a product for the connoisseur, according to Gardiner. “Due to the risks of growing so late into the winter, G’s is only growing 150,000 sticks of Fenland celery this season, so it remains a real artisan product. Our application for PGI status for Fenland celery is being processed and we are hoping that by autumn 2013 we will be able to market Fenland celery as only the third UK produce item to achieve this privileged status.”