It was a difficult start to the year for Scottish soft fruit and cherry grower Matthew McIntyre who grows fruit in Blairgowrie, north of Perth. After very low temperatures in the winter, in April they had almost 15 consecutive nights of frost, which was previously unheard of in that area.
“In our strawberry growing area temperatures got as low as -10 and -16 in the raspberry growing area in the winter, both crops suffered a lot of damage from this and the frosts in the spring. This resulted in small fruit sizing in the strawberries,” said Matthew. “Our cherry tunnels are on higher ground so escaped the very low temperatures.”
The whole of the UK suffered from a cold spring which meant that the English strawberry season was a week to 10 days late. England had less warm sunny weather during the growing season, while in Scotland temperatures and light levels were better bringing the Scottish season back to more normal timing. Normally the Scottish harvest fits in nicely as the English volumes are dropping but this year the seasons clashed causing a glut of fruit on the market.
Matthew had intended to stop strawberry production in 2022 but after a serious of bad years has decided to stop a year earlier.
“When the input costs were much lower and the prices higher we could cope the odd bad season but with the tight margins we work with these days it is no longer possible for a family farm like ours to sustain these losses. It is no longer a case of supply and demand on the market, we all work to retail programs, which work really well in good years as it is systematic and streamlined and very efficient but after a few bad years it takes its toll.”
Over the last ten years McIntyre’s has invested a lot into cherry production, which was tough in the beginning but now they are starting to see the fruits of their labour. Scotland produces the latest cherries in the Northern Hemisphere and by the end of August it is the only country supplying cherries.
“We have good storage capacity for our cherries which gives us a bit of flexibility when the harvest timings are off, we can store a third of our entire crop for up to two weeks.”
Quality control in the field to remove any cherries with mould before storage
The cherry harvest started on 13th August and the first cherries are in storage as the English season, which started later than normal, is just ending.
“We have just starting packing and the packouts so far have been good, as the cherries are brought down to temperature in our hydrocooler as soon as they arrive at the packhouse. The crop which was slightly later this season, is looking good in size and sweetness. So far so good, but we have a long way to go.”
Freshly picked cherries ready to to storage
The US and Canada suffered from heatwaves this season and less was exported so demand is good. As well as supplying the UK premium market McIntyre will also export to Dubai this year. The marketing of the cherries is done through Berry Gardens.
According to Matthew the labour situation is not too bad, it was helped by a late start to the season and lower soft fruit volumes.
Matthew McIntyre
“2/3 of our labour have pre-settled status and the rest are on the Seasonal Workers Pilot Scheme. We were a bit sceptical of the visa system and it was brought in very late this year but we are glad to have the workers here. Getting our workers the correct paperwork has been the most stressful part of the season, with the lockdown the authorities were very slow to reply to applications. The government’s system does not fit into how temporary labour works, as people move around and don’t have permanent addresses in the UK. Although the visa scheme is good, we need people for longer than it allows them to stay. Growers don’t just need people for the harvest, there a lot of husbandry work to be done before after that.”
The Berry Bus - driven by Matthew's dad, takes pickers between orchards and to the local supermarket
For more information:
Matthew McIntyre
McIntyre Fruit Ltd
Tel: +44(0)1250 884212
[email protected]
www.mcintyrefruit.co.uk