The English apple season is running roughly two weeks behind due to a late spring and warm autumn, with some variety yields down by up to 20 per cent.
Cox volumes will be down by 15-20 per cent due to smaller sizing and colour issues, while the Bramley crop is also expected to be down due to size, according to Martyn Ludlam, senior technical manager at Univeg UK.
The company was exhibiting at the National Fruit Show this week, where it displayed its new Greenyard Fresh branding for the first time, since the takeover by parent company Greenyard Foods.
“It is a very late season, we had just enough French and Belgian fruit to fill the gap,” said Ludlam. ”We had to push a little bit as retail promotional campaigns for British fruit began in September, so it was tight.”
Ludlam said some growers in Wisbech and Kent had also suffered with some hail damage, while the general trend is a warmer September, which has delayed the season in recent years.
“The climate is changing, it does feel different. The warmth in septmember is becoming a bit of a trend,” he added.
No comments yet