With the English asparagus season in full swing, I was intrigued to see that Marks & Spencer has ventured to sell tips of a white variety more commonly associated with continental European taste, at £2.49 for 100g.

There have been one or two stabs at it in the past with imports from The Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, but so far the habit has not really caught on. The difference this time is that the spears are being grown exclusively for M&S in Herefordshire by the Chinn family, who are “picking the first and freshest shoots every spring”, according to the retailer.

Summer sunshine has also done wonders for soft-fruit demand, to the point that I am beginning to hear sourcing is becoming stretched, with the real weight of outdoor crops not due to emerge until next month.

It has also created a surge in sales for the first signs of European stonefruit, although I still wish products that are promoted under the broad terminology of “ready to eat” would fulfil their promise. There is nothing more disappointing than biting into a peach, nectarine or plum to find it hard and still devoid of juice, and I am sure it affects future sales.

Years ago, at wholesale market level, it was always the same story when early grapefruit arrived from the Mediterranean in the autumn. Greengrocers took the chance, and then found customers complained the fruit was so acidic it took the enamel off their teeth! It would take a fortnight at least to tempt them back.

Meanwhile, salads have been getting a boost, and not just from the weather. Thanks to the wonders of science being able to take the product away from the riverbed, this is apparently the ideal time for Sainsbury’s new arrival; living watercress. Priced at £1 a pot, it can now take its place in a sector that is quite literally growing in every sense of the word.

At the same time, the range of different tasting, coloured and shaped tomatoes is still expanding. M&S has had Pink on the shelves for some time, and this has now been joined by a variety called Pink Heart, which can also be additionally identified by a protrusion in the flesh. Seven fruits are priced at £1.99. The variety was apparently highly regarded in Taiwan; a part of the world where such colours, as well as taste, are highly prized.

Moving westwards, to the land of the pineapple, Tesco is providing customers with a mini variety from the Ivory Coast priced at £1.19. This is perhaps a case of added value when you consider that there is plenty of giant fruit around, often at bargain prices.

The point of difference is that the variety Queen Victoria - which has appeared from time to time in the past - has a core, which rather than being somewhat woody, is in fact edible. The information on the shelf also recommended the fruit’s use as a table decoration.

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