Alan Bartlett Carrot growers to close

Devil's advocate · Feb 26, 2021

DrWazzock said:
On the edge of our town there lived an old lady who had “come back” from S Africa in the 1950’s. She bought a small farm here and grew carrots on it for maybe 30 years. The carrots were bagged up, not washed, and sold at the farmhouse. Everybody bought them until she died I think in the 1980’s.
The “drive” to do stuff like that seems to be just about extinguished. We acquiesce in corporate mediocrity because it’s “easier” or it’s “progress” but is it really? All you can buy now are flavourless washed carrots that chew into sawdust and taste like silage. Even the time of day when harvested makes a difference to sweetness but days when we harvested in the evening and took them into town early next morning have gone.

I still farm like that & do ok.

But the large growers harvest salad into fridge trailers & get it into distribution centres within 24 hours of harvest.

The range in supermarkets & wholesale markets improves every year.

Breakthru · Feb 26, 2021

Online sales offer the opportunity to recreate that individual approach. Get your product and quality right is the start after that you have to have a selling point.
Flavour colour freshness whatever. Overnight or 2 day delivery not onerous in price now, just depends on what and how you are selling.

Daniel · Feb 26, 2021

It does seem that Bartlett's have decided to close down in an orderly fashion, presumably paying off suppliers as they go?

Makes a change from someone going bust, not paying the bills and restarting the next week under a new name.

Devil's advocate · Feb 27, 2021

Enjoyed browsing the Hunterpac catologue.

What a range of kit, especially the little gem harvester with 22,000 hours on the clock.

There must have been a lot of soul searching making that decision.

Highland Mule · Feb 27, 2021

Devil's advocate said:
Enjoyed browsing the Hunterpac catologue.

Don’t tell @Bald Rick about lot #156

glasshouse · Feb 27, 2021

7610 super q said:
I think you had it right first time. When I started in the mid 80's there were about 40 farms in West Wales growing organic carrots on a small scale ( 10-20 acres each), nice little income with about half a dozen locals employed on each farm......quite often the carrots were hand forked out, less said about that the better.
Perhaps 1, maybe 2 growers left. The job seems to be in the hands of large scale growers growing 1000's of acres, with a thousand acres of organic carrots on the side.
Now the large scale growers are getting the push. Where next ? Import the lot from Poland and be done with it ?

Organic spuds used to be a good number till the big boys ruined it

glasshouse · Feb 27, 2021

DrWazzock said:
The rot set in (literally) when they started washing carrots. The flavour went and they taste “silagey”.

I got some giant dirty stockfeed carrots, they tasted far better than supermarket ones

Sonoftheheir · Feb 27, 2021

Devil's advocate said:
Enjoyed browsing the Hunterpac catologue.

What a range of kit, especially the little gem harvester with 22,000 hours on the clock.

There must have been a lot of soul searching making that decision.

Who is likely to buy that stuff though? Must be a very limited market?

Devil's advocate · Feb 27, 2021

Highland Mule said:
Don’t tell @Bald Rick about lot #156

Thanks for that, I'm after a few spares

Devil's advocate · Feb 27, 2021

Sonoftheheir said:
Who is likely to buy that stuff though? Must be a very limited market?

Lots of growers in the North west & lots of stuff can be used for general agriculture.

Hunterpac must have been fed up of brassica. Seems to me expanding into an even more difficult market but they don't get that big without knowing their own business.

I've often spoke to their drivers when delivering to local wholesalers & been to the farm once, really impressive operation.

woodylane · Feb 27, 2021

Sonoftheheir said:
Who is likely to buy that stuff though? Must be a very limited market?

Still a lot of smaller growers in the area and a few bigger ones.

Sonoftheheir · Feb 27, 2021

woodylane said:
Still a lot of smaller growers in the area and a few bigger ones.

can they get anyone to man them?

I guess they won’t need the amount of Labour with carrots?

Devil's advocate · Feb 27, 2021

Sonoftheheir said:
can they get anyone to man them?

I guess they won’t need the amount of Labour with carrots?

If they can't prices will soon go up? Long history of field work in the North West.

Caulie has made good prices at times this season

Wise man said to me if there is no work to it, there will be no profit to it.

Now of course that was rubbish my most profitable activities have been office based. But when it comes to crops, I think he was right.

spanners and hammers · Feb 27, 2021

burgess looking to take the site on

Devil's advocate · Feb 27, 2021

woodylane said:
Still a lot of smaller growers in the area and a few bigger ones.

And they love a bargin.

Those North West sales used to draw big crowds.

Norfolk Olly · Feb 27, 2021

spanners and hammers said:
burgess looking to take the site on

Tompsett burgess?

Devil's advocate · Feb 27, 2021

Meet The Producers | Great British Carrots

britishcarrots.co.uk

A Leading Fresh Produce Company

Nationwide Produce - Fruit and Vegetable suppliers

www.nationwideproduce.com

missed these

woodylane · Feb 27, 2021

Sonoftheheir said:
can they get anyone to man them?

I guess they won’t need the amount of Labour with carrots?

I didn’t hear of anyone with staffing issues last year, always seems to be a good supply of foreign labour willing to do the jobs many aren’t.

woodylane · Feb 27, 2021

Devil's advocate said:
And they love a bargin.

Those North West sales used to draw big crowds.

Yeah went to one last year in winter, just down the road from Huntapac everything made strong money.

spanners and hammers · Feb 27, 2021

burgess growers at peterbough i belive?

Alan Bartlett Carrot growers to close

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Up to 25%

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50-75%

75-100%

100% I’ve had enough of farming!

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