Guest guest Posted October 29, 2008 Report Share Posted October 29, 2008 The Guardian, Monday October 8 2007 Pumpkins are in shorter supply than usual this Halloween because of the summer downpours, according to a specialist farmer. The poor weather also means the seasonal favourites are not ripening to their usual orange colour. David Bowman, whose Lincolnshire pumpkin farm is the biggest in Europe, said his harvest was around 30% down this year on its usual crop of 2m. Growers are turning to artificial heaters to ripen green-coloured pumpkins in order to restore their usual orange colouring before they reach the stores, he said. Describing this year's crop, Mr Bowman said: " It is bad, verging on catastrophic, across the industry. " Virtually all pumpkins in the UK are sold in the run-up to Halloween. Mr Bowman added: " A lot of people have lost their crops altogether. " There is a shortage in the entire northern hemisphere - America is the same position, and I have had calls from Holland. " The pumpkin shortage, combined with the higher costs of ripening the vegetables, are likely to push prices up in stores by up to 15%, according to a report in the Grocer. Smaller producers in England have secured prices up to 15% higher from retailers for their pumpkins, the trade magazine said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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