The UK received just 60 per cent of the average 169 hours of sunshine normally experienced in August last month - the lowest light levels on record for August in 150 years. This has, unsurprisingly, not escaped notice within the vegetable industry.
In what insiders have described as a “bumpy ride”, the last three months in general have seen rainfall and cold nights throughout the country, with Lincolnshire suffering temperatures as low as 8°C at least three times in August and normally sunny Kent experiencing unseasonably low light levels.
Low light levels have seen plants maturing slowly, resulting in many crops experiencing a late harvest and damaged shelf life. The wet and damp weather has also brought risk of disease, with mildew rearing its head in many fields.
Cauliflowers have hit a rocky patch, with both demand and supply seesawing over the summer. One supplier explains the lose-lose situation: “With cauliflower, there has been either loads of it, or none. We have had to import product from Germany and Austria, which is expensive, but at the moment there is an abundance on the marketplace, which brings our price down.”
Broccoli crops have also suffered as a result of unseasonal weather. Product has been turning yellow very quickly and there have been some reports of rotten stems in Lincolnshire, where the soil has been too wet for the vegetable. In Cambridgeshire, the weather has been a little more favourable and the crop’s quality has reflected this, but availability has mirrored that of the UK cauliflower crop. Gluts in production have been caused by the changeover from mild weather to steady rainfall, and two to three weeks of broccoli have been available at one time, while at other times there has been a shortage. Imports from Europe have made this situation easier on the industry, but have caused costs to rise.
Despite this, suppliers are reporting a rise in sales by as much as 15 per cent for broccoli and 12-13 per cent for cauliflower, compared to last year. Due to the poor summer weather, many insiders have noticed that consumers have been moving towards more winter-type veg. Carrot and parsnip sales have seen a steady increase this quarter, as have courgettes. “The yield from courgettes has been excellent and demand has matched that,” says one grower in Hampshire. “We have sold every one grown so far and believe we will continue to see constant demand until we switch to Spanish stock in September.”
But elsewhere in the country, the picture is not so rosy for courgettes. Damp and cold conditions have meant that product has been on the shelves with soft ends, and crop losses have been reported in the north of England. “We have had to import courgettes into the country, which is not good and difficult for us,” says one supplier. “Normally, our growers should make decent money at this time, but I know of two farmers that have fallen out of the game because they cannot afford to have another year like the last two.”
But this has not been reflected across the board. A Hampshire-based grower has seen good crops in both his cauliflower and cabbage fields. “[Both crops] have been planted on the right land and cared for very well,” he says. “Our farm has expanded this year, with an increase in the number of managers on site. This has resulted in extra yield and better quality, although demand has been normal.”
In contrast, the popularity of imported niche vegetables continues to increase, with mangetout, sugarsnap peas and baby sweetcorn becoming part of family meals. Regardless of the expense, many believe that these products are making their mark on the marketplace and taking the shine off British staples such as broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage.
But others disagree. “Over the summer the media has been pushing the credit crunch issue forward to consumers,” says one supplier. “And we have seen people go back to basics and expecting cheaper prices.”
Nevertheless, it is not all bad news on the British front. Broad beans and runner beans have taken the limelight this quarter and shone through the doom and gloom.
“Volume for both crops has been high this quarter due to better light levels in our growing areas,” says one insider, who farms in southern England. “We would have liked to deliver more beans all over the country, but promotions have been disappointing.”
And it does not stop there. Growers in Kent have also seen bean crops do well. “Runner beans like a good deal of rain and not a lot of heat, so quality has been excellent this year,” says one grower. “Demand has been good and the price has been buoyant; we have made good money.”
The new-season UK carrot crop is looking good, with some product on stream already from Lancashire. Imported French carrots made up for the normal glut in UK production around June and July, and product was good quality, with the weather in France marginally better than that experienced in the UK at the time.
However, the jury is still out on the much-anticipated British onion season, and many fear that the wet and damp weather has not worked in its favour. “They should be okay,” says one cautious supplier. “Onions are all about a decent skin finish; you can only dry them so much in store. If they are lying in the fields in damp conditions it will lead to blacking and an unsatisfactory crop.”
Planting conditions for winter brassicas have experienced some difficulties, with wet weather putting planting schedules back in some incidences.
Insiders predict that pre-Christmas brassica crops may be harvested after the festive period.
The UK pumpkin crop is faring a lot better than it was this time last year, with the rain hitting the crop at the right time and having a positive effect. Growers in some parts of the country are even reporting early colouring, and the crop looks like it will be ready to play its key role on the multiples’ shelves this Halloween.
But it certainly looks like there are further tough times ahead for the vegetable industry.
“It is going to be hard work next quarter,” says one insider. “Onions and courgettes are likely to be short, and broccoli will finish early. We could be importing Spanish broccoli as early as mid-September. I hope it will not happen, but it does not look good.”
BARFOOTS SURVIVES DAMP SQUIB
The lack of any summer in the UK has stopped consumer demand for certain vegetables in its tracks, says Graham Young, managing director at grower and importer Barfoots of Botley. Sweetcorn sales benefit enormously from a hot summer, but the barbecues have well and truly been resigned to the garden shed this year.
The British asparagus season was also affected and we moved over completely to imported Peruvian product around June 20. The poor summer last year was partly to blame, as the asparagus crowns did not re-energise and there was not enough battery in the crowns. As a result, yield was well down for asparagus crops and the weather pattern this year led to very difficult harvesting conditions.
Historically, you do not expect Mediterranean-type summers in the UK, but two dreadful summers back to back is disastrous. Thankfully, this year the UK did not experience the floods of 2007, but the average light levels were definitely not what you would expect from a normal British summer.
Barfoots grows mainly in West Sussex, coastal Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, and I believe these areas of the UK fared much better than others in terms of light levels. Even though demand has been low for sweetcorn, the product has grown well and we have sold high volumes, so it is not all doom and gloom; but it has been a harder job to promote it.
Barfoots is constantly working on making sweetcorn more convenient and interesting, and will launch a new microwaveable single cob and a range of bite-size sweetcorn called Nibblers in October. Nibblers are aimed at both the snack sector and the foodservice industry, with bulk packs available. Both of these products will be available year round and will try to give people a fresh and convenient alternative to tinned sweetcorn, and also provide consumers with portion control.
In the next three months we will begin to move away from UK vegetables and source from the 27 other countries we work with. We have been working on a major project for the last four years to limit the amount of produce we import by airfreight. For this we have been growing vegetables in West Africa as opposed to Kenya, from where the product needs to be airfreighted. For the last three years we have been importing produce from our own farms in West Africa, which only takes five to six days by sea, whereas product from Kenya can take as long as 18 days. The project has been very encouraging and we will increase our production cover in West Africa by 500 acres this winter, as well as introduce a range of organic produce next year.
The devaluation of sterling against the euro and now the US dollar will affect UK importers and distributors as we come out of the UK supply window. It will be a major hit - even more so than the rising costs of fertilisers, energy and oil, which are all significant constituent parts of the industry. The exchange rate will hit the entire chain and the devaluation of sterling against the main trading currencies will especially affect importers.
Only those financially stable companies that are able to adapt while taking up this challenge are likely to be able to survive. When it gets tough, some businesses can excel.
This is why we are laying out our improved supply chain, new product development and increased reliance upon mechanised production processes to offset these pressures. We are aiming to achieve growth and benefit from our increased internal efficiencies.
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