I was on the east coast of the US last week and it was great to meet a group of exporters who were not only complimentary about their competitors, but also having a good start to their apple season.

Without fail, each exporter said what a good job their counterparts down the road were doing. Which even they would admit would not have been the case five years ago. A massive change of mindset has united the sector and they are being rewarded this season with as good a start to the domestic season as they can remember.

Although the English apple industry is hardly at loggerheads, even the diehards would be hard pressed to call it truly united. How could it be with the largely divisive approach of its customer base and the dog-eat-dog nature of the supermarket environment?

Asda has been called to task this week and justifiably so. Suppliers are asked to jump higher each year to supply their paymasters - they are at least entitled to expect some old-fashioned, but sadly under-rated, honesty in return.

I heard on the grapevine that both Asda and Morrisons were upset by criticism levelled at them during the last English apple season. Good.

They don’t have to support English fruit, but they choose to say that they will. If the UK industry can find the unity to force promises to become practice, they too will prosper.