The UK is famous for its changeable climate and it appears that summer brassicas across the land have been influenced by Mother Nature’s whims.
The new season kicks off in Cornwall and Alasdair MacLennan, technical director for Cornish vegetable producer Southern England Farms (SEF), says planting has been stop/start through the spring, with rain stopping play for a week at a time on a couple of occasions. “We have just managed to stay on top of it, however, as there have been weeks of solid sunshine in between the showers,” he says.
SEF began harvesting greens on May 7, followed by pointed cabbage on May 14 and cauliflower on May 18. The broccoli harvest started on Monday.
Growing conditions in the Lincolnshire area have been very dry as there has not been any significant rainfall since mid-February, says Phillip Effingham, farming division and agronomic development director of Marshalls and chairman of the Brassica Growers’ Association (BGA). “Although these conditions are very good for continuity planting, without significant rainfall, the dry conditions will become an increasing problem,” he explains. “On the silt lands there are good water reserves below, but the plants have to establish a good root structure in order to reach it.”
Marshalls will begin harvesting early cauliflower towards the end of May, with broccoli and cabbage following a week later.
Peter Davis, managing director of Lincolnshire-based importer-exporter Davis (Louth) Ltd, says the lack of rain has caused stress to some plants and some are not growing “as quickly as we would like”.
He predicts that there will be lower volumes of cauliflower throughout May as some crops are being affected by yellow leaf, curd discoloration and some pest damage. “It has been too warm and dry and there has not been enough rain to swell the frame and allow the product to grow as it should,” Davis tells FPJ.
Furthermore, Elsoms Seeds estimates that there will be a slight reduction in plantings for green cabbage, although sprouting broccoli and Savoy cabbage acreage will be similar to last season.
Producers say it is too early to make any forecasts for 2009 crop volumes and they will have to wait and see what implications the dry spell will have.
However, Effingham says there is nothing to suggest that full programmes will not be achieved, even though there are rumours of a further drop in cauliflower plantings.
Indeed, insiders say UK growers are being very careful about the area planted due to concerns about recent returns.
Historically, summer brassica sales peak towards the end of June, with demand falling during the hot summer months. “Programmes through the summer period are deliberately kept low as frozen vegetable companies are busy on vining peas and therefore unable to take any surplus broccoli or cauliflower,” Effingham explains.
Harvesting is expected to begin seven to 10 days earlier this year, but there has not been any real evidence over the past few years to suggest a trend towards earlier harvests. However, milder winters have led to an increase in later production programmes in eastern counties, Effingham says.
Growers trying for earlier or later harvests can incur extra costs and sometimes greater risk. “It is likely that growers will be very careful about how much exposure they have to this type of production,” says John Constable, brassica, bulb onion and baby leaf manager at Elsoms Seeds.
Cauliflower has gained the most fanfare recently and the publicity surrounding the plight of the category has been useful, say supporters.
Effingham says the BGA has done “everything possible” to highlight the challenges facing the cauliflower sector, in addition to focusing on its culinary strengths to the consumer.
In late February, the BGA achieved national TV coverage on the BBC’s The One Show for its cauliflower PR campaign, as well as coverage in the print and online versions of The Times and the Daily Mail.
Effingham says only time will tell if the campaign has been effective. “The best we can hope for is that it arrests the fall but, unfortunately, cost-price margins continue to be compromised by the strong retail competition across the high street,” he adds.
Year-round production could provide a boost to the sector, and both Effingham and Davis point out that some Lincolnshire growers are achieving 12-month cauliflower continuity.
According to Davis, this will allow the UK to compete with the French Brittany Prince variety during the winter. “Prices in January and February are very interesting, especially for exports to Finland and Norway, which prefer smaller-sized heads,” he adds.
Indeed, Davis (Louth) Ltd is looking to expand its exports of UK brassicas and has already secured contracts with firms in Norway, Sweden, Finland, Macedonia, Croatia, Lithuania and Latvia. “They are looking to give us year-long contracts and this allows us to plan our growing,” says Davis. “We have a minimum charge in place so at least we know that we will cover our costs before we actually plant the crops.”
According to Davis, the overall area in Europe could fall by 12 per cent compared to last year, as some German growers are not producing brassicas this year due to the poor returns that were achieved in 2008.
Even though supplying the continent does result in higher transport costs, a number of UK companies have been able to fill the brassica gaps and generate significant export sales at certain times of year. “Depending on future euro exchange rates, there is potential for us to be more competitive on price in the short to medium term, which will lift export volumes,” Effingham says.
However, MacLennan says that Cornwall is unlikely to benefit from a summer export business, except where circumstances leave the continent short of crop during its own season.
Introducing new brassica varieties is a priority for the sector and Elsoms Seeds is continuing trials of new crosses of sprouting broccoli this season. “The selection criteria for us is becoming increasingly demanding as specifications develop, and retailers and consumers become more demanding,” says Constable.
The company will introduce two new hybrids to its range in 2010. BE 2783 F1 is an early vigorous purple variety that will offer growers an alternative to its Bordeaux F1 and Santee F1 varieties. Meanwhile, BE 2752 F1 will be suitable for spring harvest and will be its first mid-season hybrid with strong, nearly leafless spears.
Elsoms Seeds is trialling a number of other brassicas, as well as root vegetables such as parsnips, carrots and swedes, and will continue to work with major producers to improve its offer during the summer and early autumn.
According to Constable, breeding is a relatively slow process, largely controlled by nature, and it is frustrating to see new crosses and know that they have to wait a year or more to produce seed.
However, growers are always looking for improvements and new products.
Only by understanding what the consumer really wants, as their attitudes, spend and preferences change, can the sector develop and deliver the right offer to meet their demands, Effingham says. This should be a joint effort with retailers in order to deliver the right offer at the point of sale. “This consumer-led focus will help grow the brassica category and, in turn, we can then work to combat the other issues that we face,” he explains.
In order to keep brassicas on the agenda, a new BGA website is in the pipeline and, if the funds are available, the group is hoping to stage a series of product-related stories for the media. “We have some great stories to tell about brassicas and in the present financial climate we consider there has never been a better time to promote these products,” Effingham says.
However, the recession could affect funding for the campaign and in order to gain maximum coverage, the BGA says it is imperative that it continues to maintain and attract industry support.
In these financially troubled times, growers are also looking to shave costs. In order to address the cost-price margin pressures, Marshalls has invested heavily in reducing production costs. One of the major cost areas is labour, which according to Effingham is also a dwindling resource.
In order to drive down costs at the planting stage, Marshalls has invested in a fully automated transplanter. It is also looking at a prototype broccoli harvester. “Field automation is long overdue in the brassica sector and we anticipate mechanical harvesting of broccoli will become the industry standard in two to three years’ time,” Effingham predicts.
SEF invested £3.5 million into its operations in 2007 and will plough significant funds into machinery this year, due to new business.
Producers are hoping that these investments will help the industry to meet the significant challenges facing the sector. According to Effingham, the low margins and limiting return on investment are resulting in, and will continue to result in, reduced investment in future production.
The situation is being exacerbated by reduced spending and investment by the government in R&D resources. “There is a definite requirement for a basic commitment to healthy eating and food security, which is currently absent,” Effingham says.
The availability of crop protection chemicals is a serious concern for the industry and is also important for the production of seed crops, says Constable. The BGA’s R&D arm has been busy lobbying and talking to members about the recent EC 91/414 review.
In the long term, the effects of climate change may also have serious consequences - not only affecting growing and harvesting conditions, but also impacting on consumer eating habits and overall preferences for all brassicas, Effingham says.
As far as opportunities go, Constable says that organic production has taken a step back but as the economy recovers, he predicts this will be reversed. He is also confident that purple-sprouting broccoli - with the arrival of new varieties and potential health benefits - has a big future. “Other areas for potential expansion include products destined for the semi-prepared market, as consumers continue to look for ways to reduce meal preparation times while retaining some involvement in the preparation,” Constable predicts.
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