Latest news with #Darnes
Express Tribune
01-07-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
Wimbledon's top strawberry faces juicy competition
Malling Centenary is known for its sweetness and size. Photo: Reuters It may be the top seed at Wimbledon but even the reigning king of strawberries knows the crown sits lightly. 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, flavour, 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 tonnes, alongside 13,000 litres 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 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." The UK produces 120,000 tonnes of strawberries each year, generating retail sales of up to 700 million pounds, said Darnes.
BBC News
14-04-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Sussex warm weather means strawberries will be ready for Easter
A Sussex strawberry grower says three weeks of sunshine has helped to produce a bumper crop of fruit which will be in supermarkets in time for Summer Berry Company, based in Colworth near Chichester, says recent warmer weather has helped it increase its production to 200 tonnes – 50 tonnes more than by the same time las Darnes, the company's commercial director, says he is "really excited" about the boost, with plants producing "lush-sweet tasting fruit".Tesco berry buyer Callum Baker said that the growth burst would mean an estimated 500,000 punnets of strawberries arriving at its stores in East and West Sussex. Mr Darnes added: "Strawberry plants love the English spring and summer climate; not too hot, not too cold with warm days and cool nights. This is why we produce the best strawberries in the world." Mr Baker said: "The arrival in stores of the first spring-grown British strawberries of the year creates a feel-good factor because it signifies the start of the UK fruit season and that summer is on the way."But their availability also brings a cheer from shoppers because British-grown strawberries are considered to be the best in the world because of our climate."Strawberries taste naturally sweeter when ripened in periods of sunny weather because it boosts their natural sugars."Dry conditions also enhance the flavour of the strawberries, making them firmer and more flavourful, he reporting by PA Media.
