Cauli has been hit by the mild, wet weather

Cauli has been hit by the mild, wet weather

Heavy rainfall returned to the UK again this week, with flood warnings issued and sirens sounded in some of the UK’s key production areas.

Warm temperatures have compounded the situation, bringing on some crops only for them to be put at risk or ruined by the rainfall.

In Lincolnshire, some growers have been unable to harvest parsnips as their fields have been too wet, and the mild weather has brought Lincolnshire cauliflower into maturity extremely early, but waterlogged fields have prevented cutting rigs from accessing the fields to harvest.

In the Vale of Evesham, leek grower Simms & Woods reported a similar situation. “The rainfall has made the situation very difficult,” said James Massingham, a director at the firm. “We have a couple of fields under water, and although the leeks are in raised beds so they are not flooded, we cannot get at them. It will take at least a couple of weeks before it is dry enough for us to have a go.”

He also warned that there could be problems for later crops if the situation continues. “Sometimes people drill in the early spring, but it is impossible to drill in these conditions,” said Massingham. But he added that the effects of last summer’s floods were more devastating, as there are many more soft-fruit and salad vegetable growers in the area whose crops were hit hard at the height of their season last July.

And on the continent, harvesting of cauliflowers has been affected in Brittany by mild, wet weather, and leafy salads from the south of France and southern Spain are also suffering. “There are lots of problems, with the salad deliveries being full of water,” said Peter Davis of importer Davis (Louth) Ltd. “Product is wet and then gets hydro-cooled to take the field heat out. But a few days later when it reaches market and you take it out of the bag, it is slimy. So we are not even bagging at the moment.”

The situation is set to get more complicated next week, with long-range forecasts indicating colder temperatures and snowfall across northern Europe from Monday.

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