UK top and stone fruit marketing company Norman Collett is quietly optimistic about the prospects for the coming stone fruit season, especially compared to last year.  Commercial director Dean Tunbridge reports that ‘this time last year we were calculating our crop in terms of kilos and not tonnage due to the widespread frosts, this season we are concentrating of maximising returns for our growers to enable some investment for the future.  Following excellent weather during pollination we are hopeful that long range forecasts are accurate and that there will be a good season for the growers’.   

Approved for use in stone fruit in 2007, SmartFresh SmartTabs are set to make an impact on this season’s plum crop.  Extensive trials in ’07 and ’08 have given specific recommendations for Marjorie Seedlings and Victorias, further research will be conducted this season into other cultivars.

The maturity stage  of the fruit is fundamental to a successful SmartTab application;  plums should be harvested within a range of 30-50% colour. It appears likely that fruit beyond 50% colour will show little response as they have passed a critical point of ethylene production.  To maximise product efficiency it is also recommended that fruit is treated on the day of harvesting, to a maximum of 24 hours post harvest.  Norman Collett Technical Director Nigel Jenner has been working with Colin Carter and Mark Tully of UK agents Landseer on stone fruit applications for the past 3 seasons, assisting in the collation of data leading to approval

Carter commented ‘ Plums are an important part of the UK stone fruit season, the application of SmartTabs technology, especially in Marjorie Seedlings, offers significant advantages to grower in improved quality and also extended shelf life which is great for consumers’.

Also in action for the 2009 crop will be Mat Tiempo CA bins – gas tight bulk bin size containers protected by a semi permeable lid which allow for precise control of atmosphere in small volumes of fruit.  Colletts will also be trialling the use of a mobile ozone generator in stone fruit ‘Ozone treated cold stores in top fruit have given us significant improvements in firmness and the preservation freshness and therefore shelf life in the last season’ said Jenner.  ‘We are optimistic that this technology will assist us in improving the shelf life and quality of fruit offered to our customers this year’