Multi-award winning apple grower Alan Firmin Ltd received recognition for its Egremont Russet crop for the first time at the National Fruit Show’s (NFS) Long Term Farm Stored Competition for 2009 on Tuesday.
The apple won first place in the STS Ltd-sponsored prize for any other dessert apple, and the company’s Paul Holman won the Landseer prize for store operator, with Nemafruits Farms Ltd winning second prize for its Cameo. FW Mansfield & Son - which came top of the class for both the Bramley and Cox categories - scooped third place for its Jazz offer.
A relatively new crop to the company, Egremont Russet has been in production at Alan Firmin Ltd’s orchard site in Kent for 10 years, although it is believed to be a Victorian variety indigenous to the UK. Top-fruit and soft-fruit manager at Alan Firmin, Brian Tompsett, told freshinfo: “We are pleased to get an award for our Russet and welcome the publicity we will get from window space at the fruit show. I have been a member of the Marden Fruit Show society for more than 25 years and the NFS has done a lot for the industry.”
Businesses Hayle Farm and W Gunyon & Sons came second and third, respectively, in the Bramley category, and SR Bray received second prize for the Cox category, with Blackmoor Estate taking third place. In the pear category, Adrian Scripps Ltd won first prize, W Gunyon & Sons came second and FW Mansfield & Son came third.
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