All articles by Fred Searle – Page 8

  • Each installation features three crowns adorned with sustainably sourced products from NCGM
    Article

    NCGM celebrates Coronation with veg and flower installations

    2023-05-04T16:04:00Z

    Visitors can find out about job opportunities on the market while they enjoy the displays

  • The move is part of McCain’s commitment to implement regenerative agriculture across 100 per cent of its global potato acreage by 2030
    Article

    McCain and NatWest offer growers sustainability support

    2023-05-04T15:33:00Z

    NatWest to provide financial support to McCain potato farmers switching to regenerative agriculture practices

  • Port of Dover
    Article

    ukFPN backs government border plans

    2023-05-04T12:50:00Z

    Lincolnshire fresh produce network stresses “strong” support for government’s border Targeting Operating Model, saying it will deliver supply chain resilience and faster border crossings with fewer checks

  • Odrek Rwabwogo is determined to boost Ugandan exports
    Article

    Making a name for Ugandan fresh produce

    2023-04-13T12:42:00Z

    Odrek Rwabwogo of Uganda’s Presidential Advisory Committee on Exports and Industrial Development (PACEID) tells Fred Searle what he thinks the country must do to establish itself as a trusted supplier to the UK and Europe

  • Aliya Hajee wants to see government support for Ugandan Hass growers
    Article

    Uganda's avocado ambitions

    2023-04-13T12:34:00Z

    Fred Searle travels to the East African nation as it begins to export Hass for the very first time. The aim: to establish the country as a trusted supplier and help lift small-scale farmers out of poverty

  • President Yoweri Museveni speaking at the press conference in Gulu
    Article

    Uganda goes global

    2023-04-13T12:26:00Z

    It may have been slower to embrace exports than some of its East African neighbours, but Uganda is now targeting rapid growth in fresh produce shipments, not least to the UK. Fred Searle reports

  • Els Berckmoes at the Research Station for Vegetable Production in Sint-Katelijne-Waver
    Article

    Where next for Belgian horticultural research?

    2023-04-13T12:18:00Z

    Located in Flanders, Belgium’s vegetable heartland, the Research Station for Vegetable Production has 60 years’ experience in translating academic research into practical knowledge for greenhouse and open-field growers. Fred Searle speaks to its director Els Berckmoes about the challenges for producers and what the non-profit is doing to help

  • Guy Jennes says the auction system has many advantages
    Article

    Could Britain learn from Belgium's auction system?

    2023-04-13T12:09:00Z

    Severe shortages in fresh produce have refocused attention on the pitfalls of UK supermarkets’ preference for seasonal contracts. Fred Searle travels to Belgium to see how the country’s fruit and vegetable auctions do things differently

  • Hoogstraten links shoppers to growers through on-pack QR codes
    Article

    Belgium’s UK export mission

    2023-04-13T12:01:00Z

    Rather than prompting Belgium to focus its efforts on other markets, Brexit has seen the country actively target export growth in Britain. Fred Searle crosses the Channel to find out how and why

  • Kenya and Tanzania are both big exporters of avocados
    Article

    Brexit has ‘boosted trade opportunities’ for East Africa

    2023-03-28T11:49:00Z

    Kenyan export consultant says East African producers stand to benefit from competitive production and labour costs as UK importers look to keep down costs and avoid red tape

  • Zahra works with around 300 smallholder farmers who log their production in an app, as demonstrated by quality control manager Museke Yekoyada
    Article

    Uganda’s jackfruit journey

    2023-03-27T16:26:00Z

    Fred Searle visits Zahra Food Industries in Uganda as the up-and-coming jackfruit supplier begins to unlock the financial potential of the country’s ‘ancestral’ trees

  • Alk Brand says having a good spread of sourcing regions is key
    Article

    Westfalia's avocado optimism

    2023-03-27T15:53:00Z

    Despite concerns around oversupply, Alk Brand is full of optimism for the future of the European avocado market. The group CEO at Westfalia Fruit tells Fred Searle where he sees greatest potential for production and consumption growth

  • B-hive general manager Dr Andrew Gill
    Article

    ​ B-hive’s big ideas

    2023-03-17T16:39:00Z

    Dr Andrew Gill tells FPJ about some of B-hive’s agritech innovations to increase yields, improve quality, and reduce waste in potatoes and other crops

  • Indonesian pickers are alleged to have faced financial exploitation last season
    Article

    New taskforce to protect seasonal worker welfare

    2023-03-17T11:38:00Z

    Following the alleged exploitation of Indonesian seasonal workers last season, a group has been established to make recruitment and employment practices more responsible in future

  • Managing director of Halls International, Paul Devlin
    Article

    Avocado balancing act

    2023-03-14T10:31:00Z

    Fred Searle talks to Paul Devlin and Ayanda Kanana of South African avocado grower and global marketer Halls to hear how they think the industry should respond to the likelihood of an oversupplied global market in 2023

  • The project to develop FreshLock was part-funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
    Article

    Barfoots extends veg life with new FreshLock tech

    2023-03-13T12:27:00Z

    New packaging pasteurises vegetables and locks in freshness to extent shelf life and help reduce food waste

  • Fairtrade banana workers in Ghana
    Article

    Fairtrade Premium is ‘critical step’ towards living wage for banana workers

    2023-03-09T13:23:00Z

    Certification scheme plays key role in supporting retailers to meet their recently announced living wage commitments, according to report by Fairtrade Foundation

  • Sarah Bradbury will take the reins at IGD on 3 July
    Article

    Sarah Bradbury named IGD’s new CEO

    2023-03-08T16:53:00Z

    Susan Barratt’s replacement has over 25 years’ experience in retail, most recently as group quality director at Tesco

  • BelOrta's commercial director Jo Lambrecht inspects empty shelves at Sainsbury's in London
    Article

    Belgium ‘ready’ to fill UK supermarket shelves

    2023-03-03T13:28:00Z

    As Belgium’s glasshouse season gets underway, BelOrta says it can help UK retailers solve produce shortages – but only if the price is right

  • BelOrta boss Philippe Appeltans featured on BBC Radio 4's Farming Today programme on 3 March
    Article

    ‘The UK needs more POs’, says BelOrta

    2023-03-03T13:13:00Z

    CEO of Belgian fresh produce co-op advises British growers to form more producer organisations to help them command higher prices with retailers