Purple Haze is thought to be the first purple carrot grown in the UK and will be sold in 500g bunches exclusively by J Sainsbury. The store is planning to follow this up with the introduction of a rainbow coloured bunch of carrots. The season for Isleham's new vegetable, which is grown in Suffolk, runs from the end of July to late September or early October. Volumes will be very limited this season and J Sainsbury's plans for next year depend on the success of this commercial trial, the store told freshinfo. 'We are very excited to have dug up old ground and sell the purple carrot exclusively,' said root vegetable buyer Russell Crowe. 'Hopefully, this unusual colour will influence children to eat more vegetables while parents can rest assured that there is nothing artificial about the carrots.' The product will be in stores priced at £1.19 a bunch from the end of July. It is grown by Isleham, part of the Solanum group in Suffolk and although it has a purple exterior, the flesh inside is orange.

Carrots were originally purple rather than orange. The bright orange root vegetable so familiar in the 21st century was developed by the Dutch in the 16th century. Its wild ancestor was a small purple or pale-fleshed plant, originally grown and eaten in the Middle and Far East. The purple carrots contain purple-red pigments called anthocyanins.

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