The first-ever British Cherry Day will see high-profile foodie events around the country next month.
Retailers, restaurants, pubs, as well as growers, will come together in July 19 to celebrate the UK-grown fruit.
The event will be the culmination of CherryAid, a campaign from FoodLoversBritain.com, to save the British cherry industry and get everyone to try at least one home-grown cherry.
Supporters of the campaign include chefs Raymond Blanc, Mark Hix, John Burton Race, Shaun Hill, Jeremy Lee and Barny Haughton, as well as Marks & Spencer and Daylesford Organic.
FoodLoversBritain.com founder Henrietta Green will be in hand at the Sillfield Farm stall at Borough Market in London, while Sugarman, Booths and Turnips will be selling the fruit.
Dozens of restaurants up and down the country will be flying the flag on British Cherry Day by featuring cherry dishes on their menus. These range from local pubs to Jeremy Lee’s Blueprint Café, the eponymous Tom Ilic, John Burton Race’s The New Angel and Barny Haughton’s Bordeaux Quay.
Daylesford Organic will be planting a cherry orchard and selling trees so that customers to plant their own. The New House Orchard in Kent will host complimentary cherry tastings, while The Brogdale Fruit Collection, near Faversham, will hold cooking demonstrations, orchard walks and cherry tastings of its huge number of traditional varieties.
M&S will be holding tastings and providing information at selected stores throughout the country on the day.
UK-grown cherries are still in danger of losing their fight against cheaper imports and the requirements of supermarket supply - with 80 per cent of UK cherry orchards lost in the last 50 years - but interest in heritage fruits, concern for food miles and an increasing number of farmers’ markets have increased demand.
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