Island Life June July 2015 June July 2015 | Page 81

FOOD

Savour the

Strawberry!
T

hey might be available for half
of the year nowadays - but
nothing quite beats the flavour of
home-grown British strawberries in the
traditional peak season months of June
and July.
Wimbledon tennis-goers certainly think
so, and it’s expected that they will savour
around 112,000 punnets of the luscious
red fruits – accompanied by 7,000 litres
of fresh cream and washed down with
28,000 bottles of champagne - during
the three-week tournament between
June 22 and July 12.
The Grade 1 strawberries will have
been picked from farms in Kent the day
before, and then delivered to Wimbledon
for inspection and hulling by 5.30am on
each day of the event.
The good news for tennis fans, and
anyone who loves this most traditional
of English summer fruits, is that soft fruit

growers are predicted a record-breaking
year for the crop.
The British strawberry season may have
started 10 days later than in 2014 due
to the colder nights we had in April - but
British Summer Fruits, the industry body

“You may also
notice that your
strawberries taste
sweeter this year.”
representing 98% of growers supplying
supermarkets, reckons that 76,000
tonnes of strawberries will be produced
this year, the equivalent weight of 6,333

double decker buses. That will easily beat
last year’s record-breaking total, by 19%.
You may also notice that your
strawberries taste sweeter this year.
That, says growers, is down to the UK
having experienced its sunniest winter
since records began. Last winter, Britain
enjoyed record levels of sunlight, whilst
the Met Office also reported the warmest
day in April for four years, peaking at an
amazing 25C (77F).
With longer periods of natural light,
the plants have produced more sugars,
resulting in a sweet and juicy crop.
Laurence Olins, chairman of British
Summer Fruits, said: “UK strawberry
growers are producing increasing
volumes of quality strawberries, so
consumers can look forward to ample
quantities on the supermarket shelves
this summer.”
Pass the cream!

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