Summer has come early at Dyson Farming
Championing the innovation that enables Dyson Farming to grow quality strawberries when traditionally British strawberries are in very short supply contributes to the UK becoming more self-sufficient in food, reducing the air miles associated with imported fruit.
Dyson Farming is harvesting its delicious British strawberries which are grown sustainably beyond the traditional UK summer season in its six-hectare glasshouse in Carrington, Lincolnshire. This is the fourth harvest of strawberries produced at the glasshouse since it opened in March 2021, the glasshouse team led by Angel Angelov are continually innovating to ensure a consistent and exceptional quality of fruit. Angel explains:
“Growing the perfect strawberry requires great attention to detail; from the way we treat our pollinators, through to selecting the right biological beneficials to suppress pests, this is all achieved by employing a great team of individuals. We then focus our final attention to the quality of picking and packing the fruit, to ensure total satisfaction for our end customers.”
The use of advanced technology means the team monitor each stage of development, from seedling to fruit, tending to micro needs and the crop as a whole. Innovation is at the heart of Dyson Farming and the team at the glasshouse are constantly exploring how technology can be harnessed to achieve the optimal growing environment.
The giant glasshouse is 424m long holding 832 rows of strawberries, this latest crop consists of 700,000 strawberry plants which will produce approximately 750t of strawberries for British consumers.
Harnessing the power of renewable energy
The glasshouse uses heat and power from the neighbouring Anaerobic Digestor plant which contributes to the overall circular farming model.
Digestate and a small amount of strawberry waste (strawberry plants and coir), are applied to nearby fields as an organic fertiliser to improve soils and crop yields. In the future, we are expecting to also use CO2 from our AD plant.
Rainwater is harvested from the glasshouse roof and stored in a lagoon, which is then used to irrigate the plants.
Crop growth is optimised by the mechanics of the hanging gutters which hold the plants. By enabling them to ‘swing’ from side to side, this allows 15% extra crop to be grown in the same area.
Every strawberry is carefully picked by hand by our experienced team of 70 glasshouse workers who will pick up to 14t a day. We ensure quality control, before weighing, packing, labelling and storing the fruit ready for transit in our on-site cold store.
Dyson Farming strawberries are available to buy in M&S stores nationwide from April.
The Estate Office,
Cyclone Way, Nocton,
Lincoln LN4 2GR