Global demand for blueberries continues to surge, with retailers and consumers increasingly expecting availability all year round. Yet berries remain one of the most challenging categories for growers and exporters due to their exceptionally short shelf life and high susceptibility to waste. In response, post-harvest specialist AgroFresh has strengthened its FreshCloud digital ecosystem through new partnerships with South African analytics firm Aerobotics and Israeli AI inno

A new “supermarket surtax” introduced in the Autumn Budget is prompting questions across the food and retail sectors about how it may influence future grocery prices and the wider supply chain. The surtax applies to large retail premises with a rateable value above £500,000, affecting an estimated 4,000 supermarket sites across the UK. Revenue generated from the measure will be used to reduce business-rates bills for smaller retailers, including independent grocers and high-s

In the wake of the Autumn Budget, supermarket chain The Co-op has publicly reaffirmed its commitment to UK agriculture — announcing that it will continue to spend more than £700 million per year with British farmers and agricultural suppliers. Image courtesy of The Co-op The retailer, which already sources the vast majority of its produce from within the UK, says maintaining this level of investment is vital for ensuring resilient supply chains at a time when growers are feel

The UK Agri-Tech Centre has unveiled a bold new initiative designed to put the spotlight on cutting-edge agri-tech companies that are quietly, but firmly, reshaping the future of UK farming. Dubbed “Grow Your Own Way; We Mean Business When it Comes to Agri-Tech”, the campaign seeks to highlight innovations across robotics, AI, advanced sensing and controlled-environment agriculture, while underscoring how the Centre is helping businesses scale. At the heart of the campaign is

The long-awaited green light for London Heathrow’s third runway has taken another step closer to take off after the government selected the winning bid in what has been described by the logistics sector as a positive step towards long-term growth. Image: Heathrow Airport The Transport Secretary this week confirmed that Heathrow Airport Limited’s (HAL’s) proposal will be used as the scheme to progress the expansion of Heathrow, which is designed to support trade, tourism and j

Foodservice supplier Delifresh has been acquired by Irish retail, wholesale, and foodservice giant Musgrave in a move that further strengthens the Irish company’s position in the premium foodservice sector in Great Britain, and signals future growth opportunities for the UK firm. Image: Delifresh The move reportedly follows Musgrave’s previous acquisitions  of Ritter Courivaud, Town & Country Fine Foods and Italicatessen UK, who are all suppliers of premium ingredients to che

Company Shop Middleton, part of the UK’s leading redistributor of surplus food and household products Company Shop Group, is celebrating a decade of environmental and social impact by cutting food waste while serving the local community.   Image: Company Shop Group Since 2015, the Manchester-based store alone has prevented 30,000 tonnes of surplus from becoming waste, delivered the equivalent of 69.3 million meals, saved members over £63 million, and avoided an estimated 78,0

Changes to business rates, minimum pay, inheritance tax, and apprenticeship funding herald winners and losers across the industry with the impact set to trickle down to consumers in the coming months as inflationary pressure increases on the UK’s food system.  FreshTalk Daily takes a look at the key changes and mixed industry reactions to Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Autumn Budget on Wednesday 26 November. Wages The National Living Wage will increase by 4.1% to £12.71 an hour f

Aldi, Co-op, Lidl, and Morrisons have announced cost-saving initiatives, including price cuts on everyday items like fresh produce, to help struggling households this winter as new research from New Covent Garden Market reveals British consumers are eating more vegetables at Christmas.  Aldi and Lidl are slashing prices of traditional festive vegetables to 8p to help shoppers budget for their Christmas food shopping.  Co-op, meanwhile, is injecting £1bn across a range of meas

DP World’s new Atlas Service is officially on the water after the first reefer containers were loaded onto the M/V BF Carp on Tuesday (25 November), marking the historic launch of this transformative shipping route that will deliver Moroccan fresh produce to buyers and retailers in the UK and Europe via a quicker, greener, and more reliable service. Image: DP World Departing from the Port of Agadir, the inaugural northbound voyage is now bound for London Gateway and Antwerp G

As Rachel Reeves stands up in the Commons today to deliver her Autumn Budget, Britain’s fruit and vegetable growers will be watching with a mix of anxiety and very cautious hope. This is the second Budget from the new Labour government , set against weak growth, a sizeable fiscal gap and heavy pressure to raise revenue without touching manifesto promises on income tax, VAT or National Insurance. For horticulture, the stakes are unusually high. The long-running EU-legacy Fruit

A cross-party group of MPs has sounded the alarm ahead of the upcoming Autumn Budget — calling it the “last chance” for government action if the UK wants to continue supporting domestic fruit and vegetable producers. Their warning comes as the UK Fruit and Veg Aid Scheme (UK-FVAS) and associated producer-organisation funding remain scheduled to end on 31 December 2025 , with no confirmed replacement yet in sight. In a letter addressed to the environment department, the group

There’s a subtle but sure revolution happening across the British countryside, and you won’t spot it in a headline or an annual review — you’ll see it in the cab of a tractor. There’s a younger farmer at the helm, phone in hand, flipping between yield maps, WhatsApp groups and weather radars while the tractor glides along neatly on auto-steer. It’s subtle, almost unassuming, but it’s exactly the kind of shift that changes everything. Because these younger digital-minded farme

Asda has agreed to sell 24 of its supermarkets along with a key distribution depot in a deal valued at £568 million, marking a major move to strengthen its financial position. The agreement includes 24 retail sites and a distribution depot in Lutterworth, Leicestershire. Ownership will transfer to multiple investment groups: US investment firm Blue Owl Capital will acquire 10 of the stores plus the Lutterworth depot. A joint venture between Blue Owl and Supermarket Income REI

Britain is eating fewer vegetables than at any point in the past half-century, with consumption continuing to slide despite years of public-health campaigns — as reported by The Times . According to national dietary data, the average weekly intake of fresh and processed vegetables (excluding potatoes) has fallen by around 12 % since 1974, dropping to under 1 kg per person. The decline is particularly stark among long-loved British staples: cabbage consumption has plummeted by

In a state-of-the-art facility in Essex, researchers are simulating tomorrow’s climate today in order to bolster the resilience of major crops against rising temperatures, humidity shifts and altered growth cycles. At the heart of the endeavour is the Smart Technology Experimental Plant Suite (STEPS) — a growth room complex designed to recreate the conditions normally associated with tropical rice paddies or subtropical onion fields. Inside, plants experience elevated heat an

The introduction of a full ban on peat in 2026 marks a disruptive yet important shift towards sustainability but varying readiness across domestic and international supply chains as well as the feasibility of peat alternatives remains a question for the horticulture industry.  Growers, garden centres, and European suppliers must transition to peat-free growing media to comply with the regulation.  Technical, financial, and perceptual barriers persist, however, with peat havin

Samskip has officially launched its direct Morocco to Europe service bringing fresh produce straight to the UK on the first weekly express reefer container ship to call at the London Container Terminal (LCT) in Tilbury. Image: Forth Ports The Samskip Toubkal made its inaugural call at LCT carrying Moroccan fresh produce, including tomatoes and citrus, ready for delivery to UK supermarkets. The news marks the second historic moment this week for the faster, cleaner and more re

Italian agronomist Isabella Dalla Ragione is leading efforts to save Italy’s forgotten fruit varieties by searching abandoned orchards and gardens in the hope of helping growers cope with climate change. Image: © Tiziana FABI / AFP Her work as part of the Archeologia Arborea foundation focuses on finding rare apples, pears, cherries, plums, peaches, and almonds cited in centuries-old diaries, farming documents, and Renaissance art.  To date, the 68-year-old has amassed a coll

Shoppers in the UK are still paying more for their weekly shop as food prices continue to increase for many staple grocery basket items, including vegetables, according to the latest ONS figures. While the rate of inflation in the UK fell to 3.6% in the 12 months to October – its lowest level since March, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said food and non-alcoholic drink inflation jumped to 4.9%  during the same period, following the dip seen in September. Consumers a