Calls for consumers to support strawberries grown closer to home

IFA soft fruit committee chairman Jimmy Kearns has called on consumers to support strawberries produced on Irish farms, which are now in full supply.

Mr Kearns said that at certain times of the year cheap imports threaten the survival of strawberry growers in Ireland by deflating the price and decreasing volume sales.

“Irish fruit is a far superior product as it is grown to the highest quality standard, locally produced, and fresher than the imports,” he said. “Irish growers have made major investment in their production systems forward-plan for at least one year ahead, and deserve fair treatment when their fruit is ready to be sold.”

Most growers in Ireland are part of the Bord Bia Quality Assurance scheme. “Labelling and traceability is a vital part of our fresh fruit business and consumers should look for properly labelled punnets with details of the grower displayed.”