A sweet summer for blackcurrants

British blackcurrant growers are anticipating a sweeter than usual crop this year on the back of the early summer’s exceptional temperatures.

The Blackcurrant Foundation, which represents growers, is predicting a crop yield of 12,000 tonnes this season, that officially began on June 26 – two weeks earlier than average.

The dry winter, coupled with warm weather and temperatures topping 30C (86F) in early June, brought the crop forward, the organisation said.