The Marden Fruit Show Society succeeded again this year in making the National Fruit Show the premier exhibition of fruit, marketing and production in the UK, according to the show’s chairman Jeremy Scott.
He was speaking after a highly successful 75th anniversary show, where there were a record of 90 stand exhibitors and more than 150 entries of competition fruit from all the production regions.
The show was followed by Marden Fruit Show Society members taking the exhibition fruit to the Lakeside Shopping Centre on the Saturday after the event, for the public to see, taste and buy.
“The show’s fundamentals of large entries of competition fruit and trade stand numbers were met and we welcomed returning stand holders and new ones,” said Scott.
“I felt an air of expectation that the harvest was nearly complete; the crop was safely in store and the annual battle to sell our fruit effectively was about to begin.”
He added that a notable success was the growing importance of the well- supported apple classes of Jazz and Rubens and the movement of dessert varieties such as Spartan and Jonagold into the Any Other Varieties classes.
“Also this year, our two most recent competitions of tomatoes and pumpkins have continued to develop, to add to soft fruit and the nut classes,” he said.
The Roderick Sarson Memorial Trophy for the Best All Round Exhibit of Apples was won by Alan Firmin Limited, Linton, Maidstone, with Cox’s Orange Pippin.
UAP Limited, an agricultural product supplier which has been a lifelong supporter of the show, initiated a series of educational visits for local primary schools.
The children’s task was to design colourful artistic panels depicting the show’s 75-year history.
No comments yet