Famous for its asparagus and plums, Evesham has a lot more to offer the UK, with production in full swing throughout the area. Known for its long affiliation with fruit and vegetables, it has built up a wealth of producers, processors and marketers that remain safe in the knowledge that they are in the best place to be.
Evesham’s asparagus production has always been the jewel in its crown and tourists come from far and wide to visit the likes of the Asparagus Festival,held on St George’s Day for the past four years. Neighbouring town Pershore equally attracts attention with its Plum Fayre in August, which starts with the Evesham Blossom Trail - another favourite with consumers.
A vast network of importers, distributors and traders has grown out of the horticultural industry in the area, forming part of UK’s fresh produce triangle, along with Spalding and Kent. Its fertile and varied soils have complemented this hub, but imports from various countries are equally important, making sure the central location can provide a range of exotic produce, as well as fruit and vegetables out of season.
Like much of horticulture throughout the UK, domestic production in Evesham has taken a hit over the years, with small growers ceasing to trade or switching their focus away from fruit and vegetables, but businesses have also consolidated and become stronger, with producers such as Evesham Vale Growers (EVG) and Westland Nurseries bucking the trend and expanding.
“A lot of the industry in Evesham interacts with each other and transport has always been the key,” says Alan Cresswell, managing director of seed breeder Enza Zaden in the UK. He grew vegetables commercially for 20 years in the region before joining Enza Zaden several years ago. “The number of businesses has declined, but the industry revitalises itself somehow and businesses have got bigger. The industry has altered dramatically in the last 20 years and a lot of family businesses have finished. Volume has remained, but the number of growers has become less. The production of soft fruit, apples and plums has been cut back dramatically, as old orchards have become unviable and the industry failed to move with the times. It certainly has a long way to go to catch up with the tonnage lost.”
Making up for lost time
“As a council, we are pro-local produce and believe the sector is a necessary and important one,” says Chris Brooks, of the economic department at Wychavon District Council. The department oversees the economic development of land-based businesses in Evesham and plays an active role in the promotion of both the asparagus and plum industries in the area. The council has had funding from Heart of England Fine Foods and the regional food group for the West Midlands, Advantage West Midlands, and generated £500,000 of publicity from its asparagus-related activities from April to June this year. “Publicity for the industry, the farm shops, restaurants and retailers is good for the local job market and the local economy,” continues Brooks. “At the council, we believe in promoting local distinctiveness and that means the fruit and vegetable season.
“It has been an amazing plum season this year. The blossom was fantastic; last year, we had a very hard frost in April, which stopped the blossom developing and then further down the line affected the fruit.”
The council is now looking towards achieving a certificate of origin for Evesham asparagus after a recommendation from DEFRA. Brooks maintains that it is not just asparagus that the area has to offer. Tomatoes have been a large crop in Evesham since EVG set up shop in the area in the 1960s. Descendants of an Italian family, Brooks says that the company livened up the industry with energy and drive.
Salad onions are also big business locally. Evesham producers generally supply four crops a season, with availability going from March until November.
Brooks’ work also includes negotiations with the Gangmaster Licensing Authority (GLA), as well as issues with supermarket protocol and the Groceries Supply Code of Practice, as well as the use of temporary workers. He believes that current gangmaster regulations are not giving growers a fair chance in the area. “Growers and associated businesses want to be compliant with the regulations, but they can be so difficult to understand,” he explains. “Growers pay a gangmaster and believe that it has carried out all the checks - if the gangmaster has not, the grower or packer gets fined and a bad name in the press, and the gangmaster disappears into the distance.
“There are grey areas; for example, when a minibus of workers arrives on your site, you must check conditions, but what about when they got into that bus, or how they get home and what kind of home they get back to? Growers feel that they have suffered; their reputations have been damaged and supermarket contracts have been lost.
“We have had some very open conversations with the GLA on this as we facilitate the meetings and I believe the GLA has taken these things on board.
“The less we use gangmasters, the less it will happen and a lot of companies are going direct and doing their own checks, but when you get a particularly good harvest and need extra workers quickly, you have to go to them. Unemployment has shot up in Evesham over the last 18 months, which is mainly because it was so low in the first place, but local workers still do not want that kind of work.
“It is also ridiculous that the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme is being phased out. It has been providing a decent influx of labour at harvest time since World War II - why stop a scheme that works? It is causing a real problem here.”
From seed to fork
“You can have more control over seed trials in Evesham because of the soils and climate, plus it is a central location and easier for growers and other interested parties to access,” says Cresswell. The Evesham-based Enza Zaden office has been in operation for five years and moved to Offenham from Devon under the instruction of Cresswell. “There is also a processor nearby to take samples to and you can reach virtually anywhere in the country in two hours,” he adds.
A salad specialist, Enza Zaden’s biggest news is the commercialisation of its Sweet Green pepper. Winner of the Fruit Logistica Innovation Award 2009, the variety is a green salad pepper that retains its colour even as it ripens. Trials are ongoing in the UK and there is one grower in the Netherlands that will be growing it for UK supermarkets. “We will keep promoting Sweet Green in the UK as it will work eventually,” he says. “There is an opening for a pepper that can be easily processed - either through a seedless pepper or with seeds at the top - which is being worked on at the moment. There used to be a pepper industry in Evesham, but it has fallen by the wayside. Hedon Salads in Yorkshire has got a substantial amount, but it is not a big crop in the UK. The Netherlands can produce peppers much more cheaply.”
Lettuce breeders are focusing as ever on mildew resistance, but also Enza Zaden’s Easy Leaf type, which allows easy harvesting either in the field or at the processor, reducing waste by 15-20 per cent. The company is also reinvesting in cucumber varieties, which Cresswell admits is a difficult market to crack.
And at the Offenham site, Enza Zaden is currently trialling 180 different types of speciality tomatoes. “Our trials have just about finished now and Spain will continue them into the winter period,” says Cresswell. “It is difficult to know what is going to come next with tomatoes, as there are so many different tastes and sizes. Variety is the key in this area. In the UK, consumers want a lot of choice when it comes to tomatoes.”
Ready to go
One company that appreciates that sentiment is EVG, which has 26 acres of speciality tomatoes under glass that go to Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and The Co-operative, nationally. The company has seven core lines - Piccolo, Elegance, Amoroso, Sunstream, Baby San Marzano, Flavorino, Santa and Orange Santa - and carries out its own trials. It also produces salad onions, fennel and asparagus locally.
“Retailers are doing a lot for British produce and now more than ever for British tomatoes,” says the company’s David Shepherd. “And from Evesham, we can send to Scotland or Kent and the product will be there the same day. Freshness is the selling point and we can deliver.”
EVG is just embarking on a new venture to up the domestic production of tomatoes in the UK significantly, with a new 12a glasshouse on its site in Blackminster, but this journey has not been without its problems.
Despite support from Brooks, the planning process for the new glasshouse took three years and was eventually won on appeal this year. Setbacks aside, EVG also had to reduce its original proposal from 20a to 12a.
“This should not have been turned down in the first place,” says Brooks. “We know more local food in place will mean fewer lorry movements. Among other things, there was opposition towards it because there are old glasshouses from years back in the area and they need breaking down. But we need to help growers create a sustainable future. The public needs to understand the complexity of the situation.”
The new glasshouse construction is now on the way, with the grounds being prepared on the 40a site, which will also include a five-acre reservoir that will catch rainfall from the glasshouse roof to be used in EVG’s neighbouring salad onion packing facility.
National Farmers’ Union Young Grower of the Year Roly Holt is a member of the family that owns the business and runs one of EVG’s existing 6a glasshouses, which grows the company’s most popular offer, Piccolo. “Light levels have been 10 per cent higher this year and Evesham has greater-than-average levels of light generally,” he explains. “We stop the new heads from growing at this time of year as they will not be able to form tomatoes and this enables the existing vines to reach their full potential.”
EVG grows tomatoes hydroponically using nutrient film technology. “The main difference is the effect it has on the irrigation system,” says Holt. “Because the water flows through, so do the nutrients and fertilisers, when they are needed. We use what we need and do not waste anything.”
The new glasshouse, which will use combined heat and power, will eventually bring EVG’s production to 48a. Demand is already in place from supermarkets and the company should have the new facility up and running by next spring, with production due to start in early summer.
“Evesham has been a horticultural region for hundreds of years and these situations hamper progress,” says Shepherd. “This will mean a significant increase in tomato production in this country. It will make us the largest speciality tomato grower in the UK.”
Prepared for anything
“We work closely with all the growers we source from in Evesham to make sure supermarket requirements are upheld and go out in the fields to check the crops with them,” says Jeremy Folkard, sales and marketing manager at processor and prepared business Kanes Foods.
The innovative company took over the Middle Littleton site 20 years ago and has seen the prepared sector change dramatically since then. At the forefront of the prepared movement, Kanes Foods - owned by John Randall - has kept ahead of its game and influenced a number of growers to increase their production. The company now produces 1.8 million bags of salad, 1.1m stirfry packs and 150,000 prepared vegetable packs a week.
On top of this, the firm also grows 120 tonnes of bean sprouts a week for its own stirfry mixes and solo packs of washed-and-ready-to-eat bean sprouts.
Although the company still supplies the traditional prepared basics, such as mixed leaf salad, shredded cabbage and stirfries, it has moved on to prepare its own wet salads, such as coleslaw and couscous, as well as producing its own dressings and egg noodles to accompany the offer.
“We started making the sauces 10 years ago and then the egg noodles four years ago,” says Folkard. “We built a prepared salad factory in 1994 and wherever possible, we source the leaves from local growers - everything apart from iceberg lettuce, which does not grow very well in this area.
“In addition to that, we then commissioned a new prepared facility in 2001 and now have three factories on site. Local growers have expanded as Kanes Foods has and we have enabled them to move out of the market garden formula into more industrial farming.
“Until two years ago, no baby leaf lettuce was grown outside in Evesham, but by working with a couple of growers we have now got a steady supply.”
Kanes Foods works with its growers to extend the UK season as much as possible, but sources from Spain, Italy and France when home-grown produce is not available. “The weak sterling has added a lot of cost, so maximising the UK season is important,” adds Folkard. “But we cannot compromise on quality. One of the big challenges with leafy salads is shelf life, especially with the current focus on waste. We cut and pack as quickly as possible, handle the product as gently as possible and use modified atmosphere techniques to extend life.”
New opportunities
“The industry will adapt and move on as it has always done, and Evesham is ideally placed to do this; there are so many fresh produce companies on Vale Business Park,” says ValeFresh’s managing director, Paul Fowler.
ValeFresh packs, ripens, stores and handles fruit and vegetable for importers and overseas senders. The company has recently welcomed new vegetable, soft-fruit and grape packing volumes and Fowler is optimistic about the future. “ValeFresh became a business in its own right in 2007; the idea was to become fully operational independently of Primafruit so we could concentrate on being a service provider and it has paid off,” he explains. “We started out with just one customer, but we have developed other customer relationships.”
The biggest challenge facing ValeFresh is getting the orders out of the doors and Fowler maintains that the business is “only as good as its last order”. The company is dealing with an increasingly complex range of products and customers, but has the potential to physically expand the business on site at Vale Business Park, as construction of a second 40-acre business park is taking place next door.
Over on the other side of the Vale of Evesham, fresh produce importer Planet Produce resides in Bretforton. The 11-year-old company sources mainly exotics and salad products from South America, Asia, Africa and Europe, as well as the UK. Its main concern remains high-end niche products, such as legumes, asparagus, babycorn and chillies, as well as limes, figs and speciality lettuce. Its facilities, which include a 25,000sqft packhouse, storage facility, technical department and quality control team, has tripled in size since it opened.
Planet Produce managing director Norman Heyes maintains that although the last 18 months have brought challenges with credit control and exchange rates, the company is in good form financially and has seen some innovation seep through in the sector. “We have just started to deal with micro herbs,” says Heyes. “We really couldn’t have foreseen the growth in micro herbs through an economic downturn, but it seems to be bucking the trend and the market grows each week. Baby leaf and baby vegetables still remain strong.
“But the business does seem to be more unsettled and unpredictable. It is down to finance and weather, as it is always a supply-and-demand market. However, Evesham is the best place to do business - the logistics and local know-how in the area is second to none. Our employees are familiar with the horticultural industry from growing up in the area and there are good haulage companies locally.”
Another firm that has grown out of the wealth of fresh produce businesses in Evesham over the last 10 years is Jacana Produce Ltd. Set up by former Frumar man Simon Smith, the company has the ethos that quality should come first. Mainly serving wholesalers and the foodservice market, business development manager Edward Cunynghame believes it is important to remain loyal to wholesale customers, although the market tends to be price orientated. “People know that they will get the best from us,” he says. “We bring expertise in branding and packaging, and make sure that the produce we supply will sell well. Branding is very important in a wholesale market - if it looks good and the place of origin is obvious, then it will do better than in a nondescript box.”
As well as a particular interest in exotics and salads from Africa, South America and Thailand, Jacana has been moving towards British and local produce over the last year and working with some soft-fruit growers in the area. “We have started to work a lot more with local growers this year, which follows the demand for local produce and is a much easier situation to deal with,” says Cunynghame. “We are working very hard to meet local growers and get supply going. This country should make the most of the seasons; it makes no sense to bring in product that can be grown in the UK in that season.”
Final link
But this complex and successful fresh produce hub in Evesham would be useless without an extensive and effective haulage and logistics system. At the forefront of this is forward-thinking haulage company Bannister.
The firm runs a 20-plus refrigerated fleet from Newtown, Evesham, picking up various suppliers’ cargo from within the area to amalgamate for further delivery to supermarket depots at its site. The last 18 months has seen the company diversifying to succeed, taking on backhauls to fully utilise both expenses and road miles. “To effectively build on the business, we take on backloads that may not necessarily be fresh produce,” explains Owens. “Last August, we dramatically changed the way we work and we have diversified where we can. We have more trucks in more places and can be more flexible for our customers. We can change our trucks from frozen, chilled or ambient, so we can take all kinds of foodstuffs on the way back to Evesham. We are also working towards our British Retail Consortium accreditation.”
Owens believes that haulage companies in Evesham should be more considerate to each other, especially in the recession. “By engaging in price wars, companies are going to devalue the job that we do,” he says. “It is very competitive and prices are reducing all the time. We are getting little encouragement from our government, with the rise in the fuel duty. One pence per litre means thousands of pounds for a haulage company.”
Owens was in full support of EVG’s new glasshouse and sent a letter to the council to make his feelings known. “British food is on the agenda these days,” he says. “The seasons seem a lot longer and we are still busy at the end of October now.
“In a wider sense, the British industry has taken a hit over the years and everything has been sourced abroad. But farming is very important and we need to keep the industry going.”
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