Signs of summer as Garforth farm prepares to pick its first strawberry crop of the year

And there are signs that the country is looking forward to beyond the coronavirus lockdown with a Leeds based farm all set to harvest its first crop of strawberries.

Annabel Makin Jones is a farmer, mother and businesswoman and told the Yorkshire Evening Post that the run up to "berry season" is hectic at the best of times but this year was one for the record books.

She runs Annabel’s Deliciously British, a brand of premium English strawberries grown on her family’s farm, Sturton Grange near Garforth, and is preparing the first pick later this month.

She said: "The run up to berry season is always hectic, but this season is one for the record books. There have been so many complexities to contend with. We’ve adapted, planned, negotiated and coped with multiple challenges. I am proud to say, we’re ready."

Annabel has had to balance protecting her staff with managing market demand after lockdown was implemented. Around 30 per cent of meals are taken outside the home so, many of her clients were in the hospitality sector such as The Ritz and Michelin starred chefs Andrew Pern and Tom Aiken.

However, she also had good relationships with retailers and last year her berries were the best-selling line in the whole of Booths and she has continued to help fill that market.

She added: "We work with both Booths and Ocado, both businesses have done well to serve and increase their customer base during the crisis. Fresh British berries are core lines for summer and we’re pleased to increase orders and their support is valued.”

It also means that she is in a position to recruit more staff throughout the summer as each tonne of berries picked requires 120-160 hours of labour.

"Our teams come to us every year and they work as part of an extended family, so keeping them well is a top priority. We devised a meticulous system of keeping our teams in communities of eight teams of 10 for socialising, laundry and shopping.

"We’ve done their shopping and washing to help keep them shielded safe and healthy. If one team came down with symptoms and needed to isolate, we could rely on the other teams to fill in. Everyone is fit and well and ready to go.

"Farming is never straightforward at the best of times, it’s been a stressful few weeks adapting our plans. All this has been done during lockdown with two young kids being home-schooled, that’s been the toughest challenge, keeping their schoolwork and schedule on track. Farmers are a tough, resilient lot, we just get on with it and feed the nation, it’s what we do.”

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