2016

Week 46, November 2016 Asda aisles: ‘Merry Christmas Everybody’ blaring out and it only just feels like winter has started! Well, one thing is for sure, the Christmas mandarins have started from Spain: Clemenules are in all stores, deliciously sweet and the archetypal Clementine, which will take us through to January. More fruit news for

FRUIT NEWS THIS WEEK: Week 44, November 2016 Seasons continue to change and I had a reminder of how the fruit trade sometimes gets it wrong: being too hasty to get to market. It’s a lesson that the very first fruit may not always be quite ready: a bit acidic, a bit starchy, a bit

Week 42, October 2016 THIS WEEK: A huge choice of new season apples and pears; mangoes, persimmons and cherimoya from Spain, the new Mediterranean citrus season starting, and interesting melons from Brazil: what more could you want? FOR MY FRUITBOWL, I WOULD BUY: Apples: Rubens, Zari and Egremont Russet from UK; Pears: Abaté Fétèl from

Week 40, October 2016 THIS WEEK: It never ceases to amaze me that, whatever the time of year, there is always something exciting happening in the fruit world! Right now, it is the start of the Spanish mango, persimmon, satsuma and clementine, and Israeli grapefruit seasons, but also the consolidation of fresh British apples and

Week 38, September 2016 THIS WEEK: The fruits of the harvest are upon us! New apples, new pears, new mangoes, new persimmons and new Satsumas are all arriving on store shelves to add to such late summer delights as Bursa figs, Mediterranean grapes and the last greengages and Charantais melons: a fruit choice for everyone.

Week 36, September 2016 THIS WEEK: An Indian summer beckons, but autumn is in the air with the first signs of turning leaves. Autumnal signs in the fruit world are all about as well, with apple and pear harvest in full flow, wild raspberries in abundance, and local plum harvests drawing to a close. It’s

Week 34, 2016 THIS WEEK: Apples, Pears, Plums and Figs: In common, a significant change in availability. Discovery apples from England, Gala from France and Spain, and Williams pears from Italy signal the start of the European topfruit harvest; the peak of English plums is reached with soft, sumptuous Victoria; while Turkish Bursa figs will

Week 32, 2016 THIS WEEK: The week is notable for many price promotions for melons, peaches and nectarines, grapes and various berries, all, coincidentally, in peak season and at their best: a feast of fruit to be enjoyed while it lasts! Gold Medal Mango Retailer: This week’s winner is Tesco for a great range of