Weather boosts British strawberries
SIZZLING spring weather has been great news for strawberry farmers – with 2020 on track to produce one of Britain’s biggest ever crops of sweeter-than-usual fruit.
According to Tesco, record levels of sunshine in recent weeks have led to an estimated 20% increase in strawberry production. The excess crop has enabled retailers to keep down the price of British-grown fruit.
The extra sunshine has contributed to increased strawberry crops across Britain, including Kent, Essex, Sussex, Hampshire, Staffordshire, Leicestershire,
Lancashire, Scotland and Wales.
Paul Avery, sales director at Berryworld UK, said: “The British strawberry crop is in great shape this year and it’s on track to be one of the biggest ever.
“The quality is superb and we’re working hard to bring an iconic piece of summer to the British public.”
Last month was the sunniest April on record for the UK, according to the Met Office. The country received an average of 224.5 hours of sunshine in April, comfortably beating the previous record of 211.9 hours set in 2015.