The English Apple Man is now in Malta enjoying a break with Mrs Apple Man and our daughter.
This week the Journal will focus on important messages from NFS President Michael Jack, Chair Sarah Calcutt and English Apples and Pears Executive Chair Ali Capper.
Below: Sarah Calcutt, Michael Jack and NFS Vice Chairman Andrew Tinsley
Below: Michael Jack
Michael Jack opened the proceedings with a welcome to the representatives of the press and reviewed the 1933 fruit show by telling the story of how fruit growers in Kent initiated a show which presented the best of English apples & pears and the objective of enticing the marketing businesses in Covent Garden and other high profile wholesale businesses to Kent, raising the profile of English apples & pears and the prospect of selling the new season fruit.
Michael reflected that today we are following the same route, as the National Fruit Show demonstrates the diverse varieties available from English orchards and the commercial stands representing the myriad of support our growers have as they embrace the cutting edge technology essential for a modern top fruit industry.
Below: Sarah Calcutt
Sarah Calcutt opened her address with news of the apple juice competition and the new Cider Competition. This new Cider competition encouraged cider makers across the UK with an on-line voting system allowing cider aficionados an opportunity to cast a vote for their favourite ciders.
The three classes were:
Class 44 Traditional Cider
Class 45 Pear/Perry Cider
Class 46 Mixed Blend (can be apple & pear plus any other ingredient)
From the on-line vote, the NFS committee organised a final tasting which determined the winners. The final choice was made by Judge Joanna Wood.
Dudda's Tun won class 44 and 45 - grown in the heart of the Garden of Eden in Kent, where legend has it that Dudda was an 11th Century person who set up a farmstead (Tun) which hundreds of years later became a village, known today as Doddington. The Dudda's Tun cider works is located at Pine Trees Farm in Doddington; very possibly shares the same earth that produced cider & apples for their ancestors!
Class 46 was won by a mix of apple & rhubarb.
Ali Capper delivered a pragmatic overview of the need for Government to act decisively on the matter of harvest labour for our expanding fruit industry.
Below: Ali Capper
Ali in her role as National Farmers Union (NFU) Chair of Fruit & Potatoes committee and Executive Chair of English Apples and Pears is at the very heart of canvassing; even pleading with Government officials (at the highest levels) for a clear strategy for the future availability of access to the 80,000 harvest workers our fruit growers need annually to pick the plethora of soft fruit, stone fruit and top fruit which is now available to UK consumers across the year.
But Ali said what WILL be Government support for the UK Agriculture & Horticultural industry after we leave the EU; "in spite of all the lobbying" is still "crystal ball stuff" - lots of reassuring comments from Michael Gove about the environment, but nothing certain about the need for a viable industry producing the one element we all need: FOOD!
Below: NFS Trophies
Below: NFS Serial Winner Annette Bardsley with just one of the many trophies won!
Below: R&D Apple Growers won many trophies including the 'Best in Show' exhibit
Below: Robert Fovargue receives The Fruit Culture Award presented by The Master of The Worshipful Company of Fruiterers
National Fruit Show 2018 - Fruit Competition Results
Class PlaceExhibitor
Class 1 : Bramley 90 - 100mm 1 Bardsley Farms
Class 1 : Bramley 90 - 100mm 2 J L Baxter & Son
Class 1 : Bramley 90 - 100mm 3 Elverton Farms Ltd
Class 2 : Bramley 80 - 90mm 1 Bardsley Farms
Class 2 : Bramley 80 - 90mm 2 Elverton Farms Ltd
Class 2 : Bramley 80 - 90mm 3
Class 3 : AOV Culinary Apples 1 Mallions Farm
Class 3 : AOV Culinary Apples 2 Loddington Farms
Class 4 : Cox's Orange Pippin or any Sport 1 Bardsley Farms
Class 4 : Cox's Orange Pippin or any Sport 2 R D Applegrowers
Class 4 : Cox's Orange Pippin or any Sport 3 Clive & Richards Edmed
Class 5 : Cox's Orange Pippin or any Sport 1 Bardsley Farms
Class 5 : Cox's Orange Pippin or any Sport 2 Mallions Farm
Class 5 : Cox's Orange Pippin or any Sport 3 R D Applegrowers
Class 5 : Cox's Orange Pippin or any Sport R Clive & Richard Edmed
Class 6 : Rubens 1= R D Applegrowers
Class 6 : Rubens 1= R D Applegrowers
Class 6 : Rubens 3 G H Chambers & Son
Class 6: Rubens R A C Goatham & Son
Class 7 : Jazz 1 Baretilt Farm
Class 7 : Jazz 2= Plumford Farm
Class 7 : Jazz 2= Howard Chapman Ltd
Class 7: Jazz R A J Bray
Class 7 : Jazz R A Hinge & Son
Class 8 : Gala or any Sport of Jonagold 1 R D Applegrowers
Class 8 : Gala or any Sport of Jonagold 2 R D Applegrowers
Class 8 : Gala or any Sport of Jonagold 3 Agrii Ltd
Class 8 : Gala or any Sport of Jonagold 4 Miller & Bradley
Class 8 : Gala or any Sport of Jonagold R Agrii Ltd
Class 8 : Gala or any Sport of Jonagold R Mallions Farm
Class 9 : Russets 1 J L Baxter & Son
Class 9 : Russets: 2= Bardsley Farms
Class 9 : Russets 2= E H Wilson & Sons
Class 10 : Cameo 1 Newmafruit Farms Ltd
Class 10 : Cameo 2 Littlechild & Son
Class 10 : Cameo 3 Newmafruit Farms Ltd
Class 10: Cameo R Elverton Farms Ltd
Class 11 : Braeburn 1 Miller & Bradley
Class 11 : Braeburn 2= Newmafruit Farms
Class 11 : Braeburn 2= Loddington Farms
Class 11 : Braeburn 2= Baretilt Farm
Class 12 : AOV Dessert Apple 1 Clive & Richard Edmed
Class 12 : AOV Dessert Apple 2 Clive & Richard Edmed
Class 12 : AOV Dessert Apple 3= Greenyard
Class 12: AOV Dessert Apple 3= Mallions Farm
Class 12: AOV Dessert Apple R S S Mount
Class 13 : Comice 1 J L Baxter & Son
Class 13 : Comice 2 Clive & Richard Edmed
Class 13 : Comice 3 Clive & Richard Edmed
Class 14 : Conference 1 Bardsley Farms
Class 14 : Conference 2 Elverton Farms Ltd
Class 14 : Conference 3 Elverton Farms Ltd
Class 15 : Concorde 1 J L Baxter & Son
Class 15 : Concorde 2 L Stevens & Sons
Class 15 : Concorde 3 L Stevens & Sons
Class 16 : AOV Pear 1 J L Baxter & Sons
Class 16 : AOV Pear
Class 18 : Dessert Apples (Novice) 1 R H Nightingale
Class 18 : Dessert Apples (Novice) 2
Class 18 : Dessert Apples (Novice) 3
Class 19 : Pears (Novice) 1 E H Wilson & Sons
Class 19 : Pears (Novice) 2 R H Nightingale
Class 19 : Pears (Novice) 3
Class 20 : Dessert Apples, Exhibitor U 40 1 Elverton Farms Ltd
Class 20 : Dessert Apples, Exhibitor U 40 2= Charnee Butcher
Class 20 : Dessert Apples, Exhibitor U 40 2= Katie Langridge
Class 20 : Dessert Apples, Exhibitor U 40 R Charnee Butcher
Class 21: Bramley Exhibitor U 40 1 Katie Langridge
Class 21: Bramley Exhibitor U 40 2= R H Nightingale
Class 21: Bramley Exhibitor U 40 2= Katie Langridge
Soft Fruit Classes
Class 30 : Summer Fruiting Strawberries 1 No entrants
Class 30 : Summer Fruiting Strawberries 2
Class 31 : Strawberries Everbearers 1 Clockhouse Farm
Class 31 : Strawberries Everbearers 2 Clockhouse Farm
Class 31 : Strawberries Everbearers 3 A J & C I Snell
Class 31: Strawberries Everbearers 4 Clockhouse Farm
Class 32 : Raspberries 1 W B Chambers Farms Ltd
Class 32 : Raspberries 2 A J & C I Snell
Class 32 : Raspberries 3 W B Chambers Farms Ltd
Class 33 : Blackberries 1 Clockhouse Farm
Class 33 : Blackberries 2 A J & C I Snell
Class 33 : Blackberries 3
Nut Classes
Class 50: Kentish Cobnuts 1 Meg Game
Class 50: Kentish Cobnuts 2 Peter Nicholls
Class 50: Kentish Cobnuts 3 J I B Cannon
Class 51 : AOV Cobnuts 1 J I B Cannon
Class 51 : AOV Cobnuts 2 J I B Cannon
Class 51 : AOV Cobnuts 3 J I B Cannon
Class 55 : Walnuts 1 Simon W L Brice
Class 55 : Walnuts 2 Granary Oils
Class 55 : Walnuts 3 Simon W L Brice
Heaviest and Biggest Classes
5 Heaviest Apples 1 R H Nightingale 4465gm
2 Derrick May (Farms) Ltd 4017.5 gm
3 Ben May 3730 gm
Single Heaviest Apple 976 gm R H Nightingale
5 Heaviest Pears 1 L Stevens & Sons 5002.5 gm
2 Leckford Estate 2800 gm 3 Derrick May (Farms) Ltd 2496 gm
Single Heaviest Pear 1174 gm L Stevens & Son
Tastiest Apple Competition
Tastiest Apple 1 JAZZ - Baretilt Farm
Tastiest Apple 2 JAZZ - Simon Bray
Tastiest Apple 3 RUBENS - R D Applegrowers
Apple Juice Classes
Class 40 : Blended Apple Juice 1 Owlet Fruit Juice
Class 40 : Blended Apple Juice 2 Wobblegate Crushed Juices
Class 40 : Blended Apple Juice 3 Four Elms Fruit Farm
Class 41: Single Variety Apple Juice 1 Biddenden Vineyards
Class 41: Single Variety Apple Juice 2 Sandringham Apple Juice
Class 41: Single Variety Apple Juice 3 Wobblegate Crushed Juices
Class 42: Blended Juices two or more 1 Owlet Fruit Juice
types of fruit
Class 42: Blended Juices two or more 2 Owlet Fruit Juice
types of fruit
Class 42: Blended Juices two or more 3 Four Elms Fruit Farm
types of fruit
Graham Amos Trophy for Best in Show Owlet Fruit Juice
Four Jays Group Trophy Owlet Fruit Juiced
A & P Hill (Fruit) Ltd Biddenden Vineyards
The Crown Trophy Owlet Fruit Juice
Best Trade Stand H L Hutchinson Ltd
Best Machinery Stand N P Seymour
Best Small Trade Stand MAF RODA AGROBOTIC
NFU South East Prize
For Best Fruit Exhibit in show R D Applegrowers
Bonanza Prize J L BAXTER & SON
Sorry, that's all for this week, its' been tricky preparing this Journal 'off line'
Take care
The English Apple Man
From Malta - Night, Night, our Balcony at Night
