Crop Report

Weather has created significant problems across most salad crops. Growers in Spain have faced storms and localised flooding, impacting both quality and availability—lettuce being particularly affected.

Storm damage has caused problems such as outer leaf and rib damage, as well as discolouration from prolonged water exposure. Concessions are in place, particularly for iceberg lettuce, to allow removal of outer leaves. We will continue to review with suppliers as necessary.

Thanks to our diverse grower base across multiple geographies, we have avoided many of the market-wide issues, minimising customer impact. We expect challenges to persist for the next week or two, depending on improved growing conditions.

While the weather has improved in Morocco, which has eased the pressure on growers, transport has become increasingly difficult. With the full Spanish season not due for another few weeks, availability remains tight across the market.

In addition, there are multiple transport delays across Europe, due to poor weather conditions, which has been exacerbated by farmer action in France and Spain over international trade deal concerns.

While we have managed availability well, the significant delays that drivers are facing are creating some quality concerns. We are working closely with our growers and supply chain to try to manage the delays and minimise the impact on our customers.

Blueberries continue to face shipping delays caused by congestion and adverse weather. While this has led to market-wide shortages, we have continued to avoid any major concerns.

Extreme cold in Poland has affected compost stored outdoors, leading to an increase in quality concerns. While the product appears unaffected at harvest, deterioration occurs during transit, causing it to decline sooner than expected.

While this is causing market-wide challenges, we do not have any major concerns regarding availability, as we have multiple growers across different origins, which helps to mitigate any potential challenges.