The UK cherry season so far, until mid-July, has been one of a lower crop and bigger-sized fruit in general; the season has also been advanced as a result of the hot weather experienced in the south of England.

“That warmer weather had some impact on fruit quality for fruit that was at maturity at that time, but overall quality has been good, and with main varieties like Kordia, Karina, Regina, and we have seen exceptional fruit,” explains Jon Clark, Managing Director at Fruit World International. “We are seeing a typical 6-week harvest window being completed in 5 weeks. Despite the shorter season, we have not seen any oversupply, as on average, growers’ yields are only 70-80% of a normal crop. The retailers have done some big promotions, which has taken the volumes out; some have also been importing cherries to fill any gaps in production.”

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Early varieties
The early varieties, like Folfer, which were picked in June, gave very large fruit and very little in standard size for supermarket packing. “In the future retailers in the UK need to consider the UK availability in June which would lend itself towards more space given in retail stores for the larger/premium fruit packs to avoid larger volumes than can be absorbed going via other channels kike the wholesale sector.”

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Scottish production
“When we look to the later part of the season, we are going to have the majority of fruit from Kent and Herefordshire finished by early August, and Scotland, which has not had the extreme heat, only just starting to pick around that time, and they will continue until late September. Scotland, like the English crop are also seeing lower yields, so considering they cover 40% of the UK supply window but with only 10% of the UK crop, we will see that balance between value and volume come into play.”

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Imported fruit
When we look at the imported fruit this season, it has provided a challenging backdrop to the UK pricing so far, albeit that is now changing.

“Through mid-June and early July, fruit from Spain, France and Belgium in particular was arriving with good quality and very low prices. Those sources have now come to an end, and we are also seeing Greece and Turkey falling in volume as we head to the end of July. Origins like Germany, Romania and Moldova will continue for a few more weeks, and we also have USA and Canadian fruit; however, those countries have a very light crop and high prices and demand locally.”

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Over 100 days of cherries
Fruit World International markets its own cherry brands Bonanza and Blossom both domestically and overseas. According to Jon, the domestic sales have been tough so far, but this is starting to change now.

“We started our domestic sales in early June; we have been around for a few years now and have done some promotion, and we are becoming a well-known cherry brand. We are the only brand to have cherries on the market for over 100 days.

“This year domestic sales have been a bit challenging, but that is now changing. We started our exports via airfreight to the Southern Hemisphere in early July, and we are currently supplying all of our key markets. I am very optimistic for the remainder of the season through to September.”

For more information:
Jon Clark
Fruit World International
Tel: +44 (0) 7525 668880
[email protected]
www.fruitworld.co.uk