The Gala harvest has been running for a couple of weeks, at Adrian Scripps, in Kent. Braeburn will start towards the end of next week, and Pink Lady will follow. James Simpson, Managing Director, said the weather has been challenging, but it looks like the cooler nights and drier days this week will both help with the ripening and picking.
"We had a hot, dry summer, but most growers have trickle irrigation; without this, the fruit size would have suffered. That said, regular rain is the best thing to keep orchards in good condition and help fruit size. The warm weather and sunshine have helped develop great flavour," according to James.
"Colour is progressing well, especially now we have cooler nights. The warm temperatures overnight during July and August did not help with colour development, but later varieties will benefit from the cooler nights and warm days. Skin finish is excellent; this is mainly due to the good weather post-flowering. We are very pleased with the quality; the fruit size looks to be very good for the UK market. Flavours and texture are very good."
The UK has a good crop; this is reflected in the crop at Adrian Scripps. "Solid, but not exceptional in terms of volume, but quality and size are very good. Some varieties would appear to be a few days early, but not exceptionally. We will be harvesting Braeburn and Pink Lady apples through to the end of October."
Adrian Scripps has a new card and paper packing line from Ravenswood, which is fed automatically with an infeed system from Burg. "We were the first to develop this line in the UK for recyclable packaging with Tesco, Pro-print, and Ravenswood. It was launched in Tesco with Kanzi apples earlier in the year. The same packaging format was then used by the apple brand Sassy. We will be extending this packaging format for other premium apples and are working with retailers to do this."
For more information:
James Simpson
Adrian Scripps Ltd
Tel: +44 1892 832406
[email protected]
www.adrianscripps.co.uk