The last three months have seen some highs and lows for the soft-fruit category, which has in turn enjoyed heat waves and endured heavy rain, with both production and demand changing in response to the very different conditions.
The first half of the strawberry season went much better than it did last year, with good weather and strong demand early on.
However, it looks as if the steady supply that the market has enjoyed so far could soon see a substantial boost, given that most of the production increase across the strawberry sub-category is targeted at the everbearer crop. This is likely to knock down prices in the later part of the season.
At the same time, quality is expected to take a hit in the second part of the season so that while top-quality fruit characterised the first half of the strawberry season, the same cannot be said for everbearer crops, which have been described as “not brilliant” and “dark and misshapen” by insiders.
“We have had some poor weather and it has caused some issues with fruit quality,” says one grower. “On top of this, low light levels in July meant that everbearers did not get off to the best start and were delayed by about two to three weeks.
“On top of this, it will be difficult to keep up demand from the public because the quality is not going to be what it could be. And part of the problem will be that we are heading for oversupply on strawberries, but consumers do not want strawberries at this time of year as much as they do in the months of June and July.”
This could mark a turnaround for the soft-fruit category, which at first enjoyed some good demand and renewed growers’ confidence in the British consumer preference for high-quality, home-grown berries of known provenance. However, for many, this promising start would have recouped some of the losses incurred last year.
The retailers have been supportive and have so far given berries some considerable shelf space, as well as a high level of promotional activity. This has resulted in strong strawberry sales, in spite of fears that the recession might turn consumers away from anything they perceive as luxury treats. “We expected to see some considerable deflation in the market with greater volumes of budget strawberries offered by retailers but, in the event, sales have been fairly modest and at a level lower than anticipated,” says an insider. “Overall, strawberry sales have been static year on year, masking the effect of an early season, which allowed promotions to start earlier, meaning prices have been on a higher like-for-like basis.
“Sales of higher-value lines such as premium strawberries and organic fruit have suffered a setback in 2008 and 2009 after their heady rise in 2006 and 2007.”
Sources say one of the biggest changes this season has been the way that fruit has been promoted in store. This year, retailers ran half-price offers for less time, moving instead to offers along the lines of two for £3 in response to consumer fears about the impact of artificial half-price deals, such as buy-one-get-one-free offers, on food waste. “Everyone is scratching their heads about what to do next,” says one supplier. “The UK soft-fruit industry has shifted a lot in the last few years and much of the volume has moved to the later part of the season. But so far this year, everyone has been reasonably happy.”
The raspberry sub-category has suffered overproduction, especially in the last month or so. This has put pressure on prices and yet again, returns to growers have been sacrificed. Many insist that the situation is unsustainable.
“Prices have been below average,” says one insider. “Most growers will make less money on raspberries this year and the situation is the same if they grow blackberries and even blueberries.
“For all these lines, prices are at an historic low right now. My view is that there have been more raspberries, blueberries and blackberries on the market this year, but there has not been as much demand. Prices are suffering and we are packing below cost.
“Strawberries, on the other hand, have not seen the same big increase in production and early crops have enjoyed good prices. However, the second part of the season will see more volumes and more price pressure.”
UK production of blueberries has continued to increase as expected and home-grown blackberries have been plentiful since mid-July, when fruit came on the market in volume. However, better availability has caused a significant price deflation in the spring and early summer market period, with prices described as “so, so cheap”.
Across the board, there has not been a great demand for imports as home-grown fruit has more or less matched demand and in the case of raspberries, blueberries and blackberries, it has actually exceeded demand.
On the whole, the trade is keeping a close eye on British soft-fruit supply as it crosses over into the later part of the season.
How supply and demand will play out from here is a concern for many growers and suppliers but, with the right planning and promotions boosted by some sunshine, the market could shape up better than expected across all the major berry lines.
KELLY CELEBRATES FULL UK SEASON
We are now deep into our first full UK berry season at Berries R Us and our plan to make more top-quality English berries consistently available to chefs on a daily basis is coming along nicely, says sales director Nick Kelly.
We have found that with blueberries, even though there has been a 100 per cent increase in UK production this year, we have comfortably sold the dramatic increase in volume, while maintaining the considerable price premium that is required to make growing home-grown blueberries worthwhile.
Our blackberries have also been a success, as chefs have traditionally avoided UK fruit in favour of Dutch and Belgian alternatives, due to their reliable condition. However, we have taken extra care to pick our blackberries at just the right moment, packed them to a high-quality Dutch specification and sold them fresh on the day they were picked, which has resulted in a considerable uplift in sales at the top end of the market, as chefs get used to the fact that they can actually have English fruit (which they want) in good condition (which they need) on a daily basis.
We have found that the UK raspberry season has been a refreshing experience so far this season, as due to reduced plantings, there is a far more manageable volume across the country, which has kept prices at a nice, steady level and resulted in steady sales every day across the season. This is in sharp contrast to previous years, when too much fruit resulted in crazy fluctuations, which can be so damaging to catering demand - when prices are up and down like a yo-yo, chefs will dive in and put raspberries on the menu when the price is low and attractive. Aggressive supermarket programmes will also be set at this point in an attempt to soak up the excess fruit and, from this, a strong demand will build across the industry. Then, due to this rapid increase in demand, prices will rocket and chefs will then take the fruit off the menu and replace it with alternative products. Thereafter, prices will crash again due to the reduced demand and the catering industry begins a 10-day process to rebuild demand and customer/chef confidence in order to get raspberries back on the menu.
This on-and-off menu pattern makes chefs want to avoid the product completely where possible and it is non-productive to growers, due to the 10-day lull in catering sales, where demand is rebuilding itself after the peak of high prices.
We are lucky enough to have our own production, which allows us to take the pressure away from these types of fluctuations and maintain consistent sales at consistent prices, based on production costs. This year, we have achieved quality fruit, consistently packed to a Dutch standard and sold at stable prices, which is a recipe for success.
English strawberries have worked out well for us this year, as we strive to achieve Dutch standards of quality through our table-top operations, giving our customers exact sizes, conditions and flavours, as and when required. It has taken a while to build customer confidence that we can achieve these standards with English strawberries, not just one day, but every day. And over the months, we have started to prove ourselves and pull them round. We are now starting to see the benefits of sales growth in English strawberries rather that imported fruit. Chefs want home-grown strawberries throughout the summer and we are sure that we will see good growth in this area going forward.
Our UK gooseberry season went far too quickly, as the heat in June brought the fruit on rapidly and good sales soaked up the volumes in no time, leaving us looking forward to next season.
Our redcurrants, blackcurrants and white currants are all hand-picked and have sold at a steady pace, at decent prices, without any quality issues across the season.
So overall, a good first English season for Berries R Us and we can now look forward to our busy import season, feeling proud that we have made an effort in flying the flag to promote local produce and have been successful in our quest to replace as many berry imports with home-grown berries across the English season.
No comments yet