Wimbledon's Strawberry Champion Faces Rivals for Its Crown
The Malling Centenary berry has reigned supreme since being introduced at The Championships in 2016, sweetening summer rituals and picnics alike at the All England Club.
Yet in the fields and labs, a new crop of challengers is ripening. In the high-stakes world of soft fruit supremacy, flavor, firmness and fame are all up for grabs.
The Malling Centenary variety is known for its sweetness, "heart-shaped" size, and quality of taste, according to Joe Furber, Food and Drinks Operations Manager at Wimbledon.
Weeks of sunshine and a "bumper crop" in the UK have helped produce an excess of strawberries, meaning Furber expects around 2.5 million of them, or 5,000 tons, alongside 13,000 liters of cream to be consumed during the Wimbledon fortnight.
This year, a portion of 10 Malling Centenary strawberries with cream costs two pounds and seventy pence ($3.70) after the first price increase (20 pence) since 2010.
The strawberries are grown in polytunnels by Hugh Lowe Farms, a family-owned business in Kent, just 31 miles from the All England Club, picked and delivered each morning at 8:30am.
"Their best time aligns perfectly with the championships, which is quite fortuitous, which is a big part of why they were chosen," Furber said.
But like every champion, it cannot afford to rest on its laurels as contenders lurk to seize the strawberry crown.
The Summer Berry Company, based at Groves Farm near Chichester, told Reuters the variety landscape is becoming increasingly competitive and that it has reduced its production of Malling Centenary over the years.
"I love Malling Centenary, I'm in no way saying it's a bad variety. I'm just saying that there's a new generation of varieties we're bringing to the market," Commercial Director Jack Darnes said.
Summer Berry, which uses robotics and artificial intelligence technology to help with the harvesting process, grows varieties including Fandango, Karima and Florice, which Darnes said are larger and sweeter.
"With Malling Centenary three or four days later they're still okay, with the new varieties you can survive even longer - six to seven days. So it's reducing waste, it's a better product for the end consumer," he said.
"We hope one day there's going to be a new summer berry variety that people at Wimbledon are going to be consuming even better than Malling Centenary," he added.
Malling Centenary does not suffer the same fate as its predecessor, the Elsanta Variety, which, according to Darnes, is no longer produced in the UK.
The UK produces 120,000 tons of strawberries each year, generating retail sales of up to 700 million pounds, said Darnes.
The global market is estimated at about 10,000,000 tons, with a value of $20 billion, according to German agriculture company Bayer.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Gauff ousted on day of Wimbledon shocks as Djokovic launches history bid
LONDON: Coco Gauff crashed out of Wimbledon on a day of first-round shocks on Tuesday but defending women's champion Barbora Krejcikova and history-chasing Novak Djokovic are up and running. US second seed Gauff arrived at the All England Club with high hopes after winning the French Open last month but was beaten 7-6 (7/3), 6-1 by Ukranian world No. 42 Dayana Yastremska. Other high-profile casualties on day two of the grass-court Grand Slam were women's third seed Jessica Pegula and fifth seed Zheng Qinwen. Instead of building on her success on the Paris clay, 21-year-old Gauff suffered her earliest Grand Slam exit since another first-round loss at Wimbledon in 2023. The two-time Grand Slam champion said she would learn from her experience, suggesting she would like more grass-court tennis in the buildup to Wimbledon in future. 'I feel like mentally I was a little bit overwhelmed with everything that came afterwards (following the French Open triumph), so I didn't feel like I had enough time to celebrate and also get back into it,' said Gauff. 'But it's the first time in this experience of, like, coming off a win and having to play Wimbledon. I definitely learned a lot of what I would and would not do again.' Earlier, US Open runner-up Pegula suffered a shock defeat against Italy's Elisabetta Cocciaretto, losing 6-2, 6-3 and was followed out of the tournament by Olympic champion Zheng, who went down 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 against unheralded Katerina Siniakova. Men's third seed Alexander Zverev also bowed out, beaten in five sets by French world No. 72 Arthur Rinderknech, giving a bleak assessment of his state of mind after the match. The German, who reached the Australian Open final earlier this year, suffered his earliest Grand Slam exit since 2019 after a marathon match that started on Monday evening. Afterwards he made surprisingly frank comments, saying he was considering therapy to talk through his mental health issues. 'It's funny, I feel very alone out there at times,' he said. 'I struggle mentally. I've been saying that since after the Australian Open.' Seven-time champion Djokovic was kept waiting until the evening to make his return to Center Court as he targets a record 25th Grand Slam, which would take him clear of his tie with long-retired Margaret Court. The veteran Serb struggled with feelings of discomfort and dropped a set but recovered to beat French world number 41 Alexandre Muller 6-1, 6-7 (7/9), 6-2, 6-2 in the final match on Center Court. Afterwards he admitted he had found it tough. 'I went from feeling my absolute best for a set and a half to my absolute worst for about 45 minutes,' he said. 'Whether it was a stomach bug, I don't know what it is. 'I struggled with that but the energy came back after some doctors' miracle pills and I managed to finish the match on a good note.' Earlier, Krejcikova, who came to Wimbledon with just six matches under her belt this year, overcame a sluggish start to beat Philippines star Alexandra Eala 3-6, 6-2, 6-1. Krejcikova has endured a difficult time since defeating Italy's Jasmine Paolini in the final last year. The 29-year-old was out of action this season until May after suffering a back injury and pulled out of last week's Eastbourne Open before the quarter-finals with a thigh problem. 'I was in a lot of pain in my back and I didn't really know how my career was going to go,' she said. 'I'm super happy and super excited that I can be here and that I can play on such a great court.' Men's world No. 1 Jannik Sinner brushed aside fellow Italian Luca Nardi 6-4, 6-3, 6-0 with a minimum of fuss. Five-time Grand Slam winner Iga Swiatek swatted aside Russia's Polina Kudermetova 7-5, 6-1. Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova lost in straight sets in an emotional farewell appearance against US 10th seed Emma Navarro. There were also wins for men's fourth seed Jack Draper and fifth seed Taylor Fritz.
Asharq Al-Awsat
7 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Djokovic Passes Muller Test to Reach Wimbledon Second Round
Seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic was made to work hard after a strong start as he began his bid for a 25th Grand Slam title by beating unseeded Frenchman Alexandre Muller 6-1 6-7(7) 6-2 6-2 to reach the second round on Tuesday. The sixth seed, who is aiming to equal Roger Federer's haul at the All England Club and move past Margaret Court in the all-time list of major champions, will take on British wild card Dan Evans in the next round. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't think I have a chance, to be honest," Djokovic said. "I think I always have a chance, I've earned my right to feel I can go all the way to the title. I've had arguably the most success of any Grand Slam here in the last decade. "It's just the beginning of the tournament. There are many fantastic players in the draw. I'm going to be playing a Briton in the next round. That's going to be a tough one, but I look forward to it. "I've always felt like grass, particularly in the second part of my career, was really the surface where I played my best tennis, so why not do it again?" Djokovic, who endured a poor year before lifting his 100th tour-level trophy in Geneva ahead of a run to the semi-finals of the French Open, powered through the opening set against Muller by winning six games on the trot. Muller put up much more of a fight in the next set, saving five breakpoints to hold for 4-4 before forcing a tiebreak where he raised his game again to battle from 2-5 down and draw level in the match. Djokovic caught his breath when the Centre Court roof was closed and then took a medical timeout early in the third set for a stomach problem, before going up 3-2 with a break after Muller hit his sixth double fault of the match. Having wrapped up the third set, Djokovic racked up a 4-2 advantage in the fourth set with an exquisite backhand winner and there was no looking back from there as he completed the victory by holding to love. "I went from feeling my absolute best for a set and a half to my absolute worst for about 45 minutes," Djokovic added. "Whether it was a stomach bug, I don't know what it was, but I just struggled with that. The energy kicked back in after some doctor's miracle pills. "I managed to finish the match on a good note."
Asharq Al-Awsat
7 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Emotional Gauff Blames Switch from Clay to Grass for Wimbledon Defeat
A tearful Coco Gauff said she had not coped well with the switch from Paris clay to Wimbledon grass after she was dumped out of the championships in the first round on Tuesday. The French Open champion looked uncomfortable under the roof on Court One and failed to find any serving rhythm as she succumbed 7-6(3) 6-1 to Ukrainian world number 42 Dayana Yastremska. Gauff was eager to give her big-hitting opponent credit for the win but said she would probably change her tactics in future during the three weeks between Roland Garros and Wimbledon. "I just feel like the surface I maybe could have used more matches. It's like finding the puzzle," the American second seed said. "It's a quick turnaround, so I think just trying to learn on whether it's better to train more and maybe play Bad Homburg or Eastbourne." Gauff, 21, was knocked out in the first round at Berlin and had little other grasscourt practice before Wimbledon. Her win in Paris was the second Grand Slam victory of her career following last year's US Open triumph. "I feel like mentally I was a little bit overwhelmed with everything that came afterwards, so I didn't feel like I had enough time to celebrate and also get back into it," she said. Gauff wiped away tears as she discussed her disappointment at failing to adjust to the surface, which she said was harder to adapt to than from clay to hard court. "I have faith that if I can make these adjustments, I can do well here. I really do want to do well here. I'm not someone who wants to write myself off grass this early in my career, but I definitely need to make changes if I want to be successful here," she said. "I'm trying to be positive. After the match, I definitely was struggling in the locker room. I don't like losing." Gauff slipped over several times early in the match, while Yastremska looked sure-footed as she pummeled the American with winners from the baseline. The Ukrainian had reached the final of the Nottingham tournament as well as the quarter-finals at Eastbourne in the run-up to Wimbledon. "Dayana played great. I felt like I wasn't playing terrible in some points, and she was hitting winners." Gauff followed compatriot and third seed Jessica Pegula out of the tournament in the first round on Tuesday. "I feel like historically Wimbledon always has so many upsets in first rounds here... it's always a topic."
