carrot boost

14 December 2001




Cut-and-peel a

carrot boost

Carrots and onions came in for special attention at

a two day conference and trade show in Spalding recently

Edward Long reports the highlights

CARROT sales could jump by up to 40% thanks to booming demand for value-added cut-and-peel packs of baby carrots and snack foods.

This will be bolt-on business and is not expected to eat too far into the existing market. The market shift reflects changes in North America, which have revitalised the sector there.

"Sales of the value-added product could increase the UK market by up to 40%," says Peter Wright of Watton Produce in Norfolk. "After two years of development demand is now set to take-off."

To meet increasing interest from consumers, Watton Produce has doubled capacity to 100t of packed produce a week. As well as being sold in supermarket chill cabinets, it is also included in mixed vegetable packs.

The cut-and-peel process involves topping and tailing long roots and cutting them into uniform lengths before peeling away the outer skin. The core must be small and the same colour as the flesh and the end product must have a crisp, crunchy texture, sweet carroty taste and a high sugar content, as it is eaten raw.

In the USA cut-and-peel has revived the crop, boosting consumption by 63% in just 11 years, says grower Keith Price of the Mercer Ranch, which grows 2226ha (5500 acres) of carrots in Washington and California.

"A lot of the increased demand has come from children who like small tasty carrots and the various snacks. This value-added sector has stabilised grower prices and boosted confidence. It is a win-win situation, as both growers and processors benefit. Now US farmers grow 110,000 acres for cut-and-peel, it accounts for half our crop."

Peter Wright – Watton Produce has doubled capacity to meet growing demand for value-added carrots.

Visit spurred growth

CUT-and-peel got off the ground in the UK three years ago after Elsoms Seeds took a party of growers to see what was happening in Canada.

"Before we left I was a sceptic, I did not believe there was anything for us, but once there I was converted," says Elsoms vegetable director Tony Hewitt.

"I was amazed that the technique has injected new life into the crop. I am surprised it has taken UK packers so long to wake up to what cut-and-peel has to offer."


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