Strawberry alert issued for households buying at Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury's or M&S
Strawberry fans over the UK are being warned of a so-called 'giant' bumper crop
A warning has been issued for shoppers buying strawberries at UK supermarkets this summer - including Tesco, Morrisons, Sainsbury's, Asda and M&S. Strawberry lovers are being informed about a so-called 'giant' bumper crop that has emerged.
The strawberries this season are reported to be huge in size, sparking concerns that they may not even fit in mouths. UK growers have spoken to the Guardian about the unusual size of the berries, with one saying they have "never seen anything like it."
Bartosz Pinkosz, Operations Director at the Summer Berry Company, explained the unusual growth: "We had the darkest January and February since the 70s but then the brightest March and April since 1910. From March onwards it was really kind of perfect for tunnel strawberries. The berries are between 10 percent and 20 percent larger."
Pinkosz stated that the company's strawberry plants are producing 'giant' 50g berries that are too large to fit in your mouth, Birmingham Live reports.
Nick Marston, the chair of the industry body British Berry Growers, stated: "We're seeing very good size, shape, appearance, and most of all, really great flavour and sugar content, which is what consumers want when they buy British strawberries."
He added: "I'm always a little cautious of saying strawberries are 20% bigger because there's an average involved and some crops will be slightly smaller than others. But I think it would be fair to say the very nice sunshine, the cool overnight temperatures, are ideal for fruit development."
"The slower the development of the fruits, the more time to expand the cells and create the bigger berry. What we are now seeing is something I have never seen in 19 years, which is consistently larger berries," he said.
As well as the giant size of the berries, Marston had another warning.
He spoke on the fears of water shortages, and how it may become an issue for some growers. He went on to say: "It has been a perfect start to the strawberry season for us ... I have genuinely never seen a harvest produce such large berries consistently. Some are supersized – growing to the size of plums or even kiwi fruits."
Up until recently, the UK's most popular strawberry variety was the Dutch variety called Elsanta. Favoured by growers for its disease resistance and reliable, high yields, Elsanta dominated supermarket shelves.
However, many consumers found the fruit to be lacking in flavour, prompting growers and retailers to search for a more appealing alternative.
It comes ahead of Wimbledon in July, with strawberries and cream being a famous pairing at the tennis tournament, tennis spectators might be in for a bigger treat this year than usual.
Ahead of the summer tournament the website said: "Our world-famous berries are hand-picked and delivered to the All England Club each morning where they are inspected by our Food & Drink team to make sure only the best are served to our guests."
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