The strawberry season got off to a flying start this year and, with record temperatures in April spurring on production and stoking demand alongside some much-needed inflation, UK growers thought they were onto a winner.
But a dip in temperatures and rain in May, which culminated in a Bank Holiday wash-out last week, has put a dampener on the category.
So where does this leave the UK strawberry sector? And how is the season likely to pan out?
English glasshouse fruit first arrived on the market at the beginning of March - some seven weeks earlier than usual - and Scottish production was also well ahead of schedule.
Record temperatures in April sped up UK production and boosted demand and, with the sun shining, the first arrivals of UK strawberries were eagerly anticipated. “Demand for strawberries was extremely good throughout the early period,” says Ian Waller at The Summerfruit Company, which forms part of Redbridge Worldfresh. “UK glasshouse crop sold very well, as did some of the earliest polytunnel fruit that we have seen for many years. This created a good marketplace for UK producers and brought a very early end to the Spanish season.”
But rain and lower temperatures in May saw demand for strawberries plummet just as the UK offer arrived on the market in volume. “The cooler weather has slowed production a little, which may be fortunate as the crop looked as though it would peak in early to mid-June as opposed to the normal Wimbledon peak,” says Waller.
The erratic weather has made it difficult to predict how the season will pan out. “The fluctuation in weather is making estimation and longer-term crop predictions very difficult, but the industry may still face a shortage in July,” Waller adds.
But the ups and downs of the weather in the last few months have created some opportunities for UK growers, according to Nick Marston at Berry Gardens. “A warm April and cool May means good yields and good sizes,” he says.
The early season means the arrival of fruit on the market will be evenly spread, says Adam Olins at BerryWorld, but a shortfall of UK fruit is anticipated in June and the first weeks of July, and imports will be drafted in from the US, the Netherlands and Belgium to meet demand.
But there is a good level of production for the second half of the UK season, according to Marston, with everbearers coming on stream in August or September.
British Summer Fruits (BSF) kicked off the British berry season on Monday, with a procession of colourful strawberry and raspberry taxis across central London, and thousands of punnets of strawberries and raspberries were handed out across the capital on Tuesday.
The taxi fleet will be in service for the duration of the British soft-fruit season, from June to September, and UK consumers will have the chance to win a month’s supply of home-grown product by sending a picture of themselves in one of the themed taxis to Superberries.co.uk.
BSF gave away 4,000 punnets of UK strawberries outside key central London tube stations on May 5 and May 25 in the lead up to the annual World Cancer Research Fund’s Fruity Friday fundraising and awareness event.
The volume of fruit that has moved through the system so far has more than doubled from 2006 and, while bad weather in May put the brakes on both production and demand, last weekend saw a return to warm and sunny weather. “We are well ahead of last year in terms of total volumes sold so far,” says Marston. “The quality has been very good.”
Around 1,750t of UK strawberries were sold in the week from May 21, up from 750t at this time last year, according to BSF data, and sales volumes for the week commencing May 28 reached 2,600t, up from 1,400t in the same period in 2006.
Pack sizes are being scaled up in a bid to push more fruit through the system, and get shoppers to trade up. BerryWorld has introduced 1kg-plus packs of UK strawberries following the success of 2kg packs for Spanish fruit, and this will join the existing 450g offer to give shoppers a range of options. Price promotions have also helped maintain demand when rain and lower temperatures set in.
Prospects for the 2007 season look good, says Waller, but he warns that, as always, the weather will make an impact on both production and demand.
But the soft-fruit sector is facing up to two major issues this season, which are the biggest threats to the industry. The ongoing opposition to polytunnels and the more recent problem of labour shortage are taking their toll on UK growers. The sector must overcome both obstacles in order to supply the growing demand for British product, says Waller. The alternative is a large volume of imported product throughout the summer months, he adds.
The polytunnel debate has reared its ugly head again and, with the uncertainty surrounding planning permission causing a headache for UK growers, a question mark is still hanging over the future of strawberry production.
BSF has linked up with the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) in a bid to get some clarification on polytunnel policy following an official ruling by Herefordshire Council that the temporary structures must be subject to planning permission applications.
UK growers are also warning that a shortfall of migrant labour could impact on the soft-fruit sector this year and, if the problem is not resolved, a portion of the crop is likely to remain unpicked. “Because the season has been so early, there has been a shortage of pickers - students haven’t finished yet and a lot of migrant workers haven’t arrived yet,” says Olins. “It would have slowed up the harvest if April temperatures had continued.”
The NFU has urged the government to increase the number of work permits offered to seasonal workers to take the pressure off UK growers. “There is a serious problem with the availability of workers for this years’ harvest,” says the NFU. “There is potential for some crops to remain unharvested, although businesses will do everything they can to draft in the necessary labour to prevent crops being left in the ground.”
An NFU survey of 13 soft-fruit and vegetable growers showed the businesses were 2,400 workers short of the estimated 4,400 needed to harvest the 2007 crop.
“The NFU and industry bodies are trying to get the government to review the SAWS scheme,” says Marston. “Growers are short of labour, and it’s a serious problem.”
The use of harvesting rigs and table tops has been flagged up as a possible solution as they reduce labour requirements by making the harvest more efficient, but UK growers need time and money to implement this, he adds.
“I am hopeful that the efforts directed on the labour issue will be successful,” says Waller. “Otherwise we may see the dreadful scenario of fields of top-quality fruit not being harvested.”
But the challenges facing the soft-fruit sector have not put a stop to its rapid growth and development. UK growers have welcomed inflation this season as, according to John Gray at Scotland-based Angus Soft Fruits, profitability was under pressure last year. “Retails have been the same for the last three years, with half-price deals at £1.69, but production costs have been nudging up,” he says. “This year has seen some inflation, with half-price deals at £1.89. This is what the industry needs.”
UK strawberries make up a competitive market, and the race to find new or improved varieties, with higher yields, resistance to disease and better shape and taste has seen a host of commercial trials and product launches this season.
Berry Gardens is carrying out trials on two potential Elsanta replacements - Juliette, which is grown on eight hectares, and Cordelia, produced on 1ha - and acreages will increase for the 2008-09 season. A new premium June-bearer variety, named Hermione, and new everbearer Ophelia have also entered their first year of commercial trials.
The supplier has also upped production of the premium Jubilee variety to 4,000t this year, from 2,400t in 2006.
Two new strawberry varieties have been launched by soft-fruit breeder Redeva, part of Redbridge Worldfresh, for this season. Red Glory and Red Princess have been developed for the UK climate and will be grown exclusively by The Summerfruit Company. The early-producing strawberry variants produce yields of a higher quality fruit in comparison to other industry available varieties, according to Irene Geoghegan at Redeva, and the season can be extended from May to October or November.
BerryWorld will introduce a new everbearer - still named AA22 - this season. Extensive trials have been underway, with acreage projected to reach 100 acres in 2008. “AA22 has a better quality and taste than existing everbearer varieties,” says Olins. “It will be available from August or September.”
The range of trials and new developments in the UK strawberry sector is testament to the thriving category and, providing the good weather holds out, UK growers have their fingers crossed for a strong season. English supply is set to peak in the next two weeks.
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