After decades of importing cherries, hardier varieties and better technology have turned UK growers’ fortunes around.
Government figures released this weekend show that 2014 was a record year for cherry production, with up to 3,500 tonnes of the fruit produced – more than double the previous year’s yield, and worth around £20m.
“New technology has driven a renaissance of the industry, and with a combination of Gisela dwarfing root stocks, new varieties being bred, high tunnels to protect the crops from British weather and drip irrigation, we now have the ability to deliver fresh cherries reliably from late June right until the end of September – that’s a three-month season, one of the longest in the world. This demonstrates how British growers are using modern technology to identify market opportunities to replace imported fruit and deliver a world-class product.”
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