That the English top-fruit industry may be in danger of burning itself out by pushing too much fruit into the pre-Chrsitmas window is an argument that will find a lot of support from within the industry, both at home and abroad.

The mad rush for early sales is great for good-news stories, but the desire to sustain a brisk start with an English-dominated sales pitch is detrimental to the balance of the domestic industry, as well as other northern-hemisphere suppliers to the UK.

I am not against the idea of backing home-grown fruit, but it has to be done in a manner that minimises the long-term strain on growers and marketing desks that have a finite crop and finite resources with which to grade, pack and distribute the crop.

It’s all well and good to get a supply of English fruit on shelf by hook or by crook, but what damage does it do to the creaking infrastructure and bank balance of the supply chain? And what damage to future sales if that fruit is rushed through a system unable to cope with the speed required - jeopardising quality standards?

All seems rosy in the top-fruit orchards in a good production year. But at some point, a poor supply season will inevitably arrive. With non-UK suppliers looking elsewhere, a market bereft of the English fruit to meet its expectations could well come crashing back down to earth.