Irish consumers are expected to munch their way through €20.5 million worth of Irish-grown strawberries over this summer, the Irish Food Board said yesterday.
Launching the official opening of the strawberry season, An Bord Bia produced figures which showed a dramatic growth in the number of acres of strawberries being grown here.
These showed that the Irish market grew from €11.3 million in 2001 to €20 million in 2004, the last year for which figures are available. The area of fresh market strawberries produced in Ireland is 178 hectares and was valued at €20.5 million at farmgate level.
Teresa Brophy, Ireland market manager, Bord Bia, said consumption of strawberries was increasing annually as had been shown by research in supermarkets and other retail outlets. The frequency of strawberry purchases increased by 13.7 per cent from 2003 to 2004 and the volume spend on each shopping trip also increased by 4 per cent," she said.
She said the latest health advice on food had shown strawberries to be rich in Vitamin C, folic acid, potassium and fibre. Consumers were being urged to eat whole, fresh strawberries because so much Vitamin C is destroyed by chopping and in cooking.
Gary McCarthy, chairman of the Irish Soft Fruit Growers' Association, said the strawberry season in Ireland runs from May to October but June is the time when this delicious fruit is at its most plentiful. With consumers increasingly aware of the healthy benefits of eating fresh fruit, the soft fruit business was expanding each year.
"Our members are responding to this increase with the highest quality and safety standards and bumper crops each year," he said.
There have been a number of important developments in strawberry production in Ireland in recent years including the introduction of a "weather proof" breed of the plant which can withstand wetter and colder climates without loss of production. This and the introduction of labour from former Eastern bloc countries has led to an upsurge in production in both Co Wexford and in North Co Dublin.