The soft-fruit sector has come through a number of disruptions in recent months, from the heavy rain that plagued Spanish growers and suppliers to the altogether more unusual natural disaster of the ongoing eruption of an Icelandic volcano and its impact worldwide.
But now that the UK is gearing up for its berry peak, what is the latest from the soft-fruit sector? And how is this season expected to measure up against previous years?
Strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries make up one of the most dynamic categories in the fresh produce aisles, so much so that soft fruit as a whole has become the leading fruit category over citrus, stonefruit and top fruit in the last 12 months. Industry analyst Kantar Worldpanel reports that, while the volume of fruit as a whole is growing at just 3.1 per cent, berries are growing at 11.3 per cent and strawberries in particular are enjoying success at 11.8 per cent.
The British strawberry season kicked off at the beginning of May following limited glasshouse supply in April and in spite of the cold start to the year that had looked set to delay the start of home-grown supply, bursts of warm weather have meant that supermarkets are receiving a good supply of UK strawberries on schedule. By the end of the month, it is expected that British product will make up 100 per cent of supply.
According to industry body British Summer Fruits (BSF), the recent combination of warm days and cool nights has resulted in good yields, producing excellent-tasting berries.
The strawberry season is expected to reach its maximum tonnage around a week later than last year in June followed by a second peak in mid-August, before continuing at progressively reduced levels throughout August and September and into early October.
Insiders are forecasting a rise on last May’s record strawberry sales, which doubled in comparison to the previous year. The general predictions for the upcoming British season indicate more volume, more growth and more availability are on the way.
BSF chairman Laurence Olins said: “The sales increase is an encouraging sign ahead of what we predict will be another strong season, which has been boosted by the recent warm weather.
“We hope that customers will continue to enjoy British berries from now until early October, with another high-quality crop on the way following last year’s success across British strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries.”
On the ground, growers and suppliers agree that this season has the potential to be a strong one, especially if the sun comes out for the Wimbledon tennis tournament and the FIFA World Cup. Industry-wide, the strawberry supply peak is expected to be around 13 June.
“Home-grown fruit is picking up after a difficult few months, with Spain in particular struggling with heavy rain and an early finish to the season,” says one supplier. “The UK season is running up to 10 days later than normal, but there are no imports left in the system and the weather for this week is expected to be good so we should come on slowly but surely.
“Scottish supply is running a little later, so supplies should be ready for the first or second week of Wimbledon. And this year should be interesting because of the World Cup effect, with more people expected to be eating with friends and having barbecues if the sun is shining.”
Home-grown raspberries will not reach the market until the first week of June, with the peak expected in the last week of June and the following four weeks. The major players are hoping for a sales boost, after winter supply and demand was hit by limited availability.
English blueberries are set to get a boost this season, with volumes expected to get a 70 per cent lift on last year and packing set to get underway in the first week of June.
“Most English blueberry plants are now three to four years old, so they will produce more as they mature,” says an insider. “Interestingly, demand in both Europe and the US has been strong so far this year and with supplies coming out of South America, that has had an effect on prices in the UK.
“But sales are picking up again and sales have been good over the last three weeks - looking ahead though, they should continue in this way.”
ACHIEVING THE LARGEST OUTPUT WITH THE SMALLEST FOOTPRINT
One of the UK’s foremost soft-fruit marketing companies is working with Proseal as its supplier of choice for heat-sealing equipment for top-sealing its fruit punnets. To date, the BerryWorld grower base has installed 12 Proseal GT1 and GT2 machines across the UK.
BerryWorld was established in 1994 and specialises in soft fruit, accounting for a large proportion of supplies to UK multiple retailers. The company represents growers covering more than 2,500 acres of soft-fruit production in the UK and throughout the world, ensuring year-round supply and enabling it to offer the widest selection of berries and currants.
Heat-sealing fruit punnets, as opposed to clip-on lids, are helping growers to reduce packaging weight by 30 per cent. With the large volumes BerryWorld handles, it is imperative that neither packing speed nor product quality is compromised in the change of pack format, and for these reasons the company investigated the choice of equipment on the market thoroughly.
“We trialled all the major manufacturers to determine the best equipment for our specific needs and Proseal came out on top,” explains BerryWorld’s supply chain manager Wickus Olivier. “The simplicity of the machines is their greatest strength. They are robust and reliable, easy to operate and deliver the high speeds that we require - averaging 70 punnets per minute, while the GT2 is capable of achieving up to 95 or 100 punnets when necessary.
“Equally important, both the GT1 and GT2 have the smallest footprint of all the models we tested and this is a critical benefit for many of our growers, whose packhouses were not designed for large pieces of equipment. With Proseal, we are able to achieve the largest output from the smallest footprint.”
The GT1 and GT2 feature an infeed conveyor and tray-positioning system that enables them to achieve and maintain high throughput speeds. A film-feed system provides enhanced control of the sealing operation for improved seal quality, with easy film threading and dynamic control of the movement of the film throughout the feed cycle in order to maintain constant tension and avoid film snapping.
Proseal’s advanced Auto-Tool allows tool changes to be carried out in around two minutes and an intuitive touch-screen control optimises fast set up and ensures ease of operation. The touch screen can also be viewed and controlled remotely and provides detailed production data and monitoring, as well as full diagnostics.
Olivier says the high performance of the Proseal infeed system in particular is critical to maintaining a consistent throughput to match the speed of the sealer. “There is little point in having a machine capable of 90 packs per minute if the infeed is only capable of 70,” he points out. “The infeed needs to ensure a minimum, but also a consistent volume from the individual weighing stations at all times. The Proseal tray sealers are extremely competent in this area and seem to have the edge over their competitors.
“We have been impressed with the high level of service provided by Proseal,” continues Olivier. “The company is dedicated to making things work for its customers. While the equipment is very reliable, where there have been problems, Proseal devoted an engineer to us to ensure the situation was resolved as quickly as possible.”
BerryWorld has enjoyed consistently strong growth since the company was founded, reaching an annual turnover of £150 million last year. The soft-fruit market as a whole remains one of the fastest-growing sectors within fresh produce.
“With this level of growth, any investment in equipment has got to be on the basis that the machines can not only meet our current requirements but continue to make a contribution in the years ahead,” concludes Olivier. “With Proseal, we are confident we have a partner who will be with us every step of the way.”
To that end, Proseal has recognised that any developments in lid materials need to be conducive with existing sealing technology. The company is therefore working with all the major lid material companies in the development of resealable films that operate in the same way as current materials. Such an approach will provide future proofing for Proseal’s sealing systems. In addition, all Proseal equipment is already modified atmosphere packing (MAP) capable, which will ensure a smooth technology transfer as and when MAP processes or films are introduced.
The excellent performance of the BerryWorld lines has also led the company to recommend Proseal to its Spanish suppliers and Proseal equipment has now been installed in several Spanish soft-fruit packing operations.
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