Apples
The bad news about British apples - and why we need to buy British!
We are losing apple orchards at an alarming rate. Data from Natural England shows that the orchard area throughout England has declined by 63% since 1950. Wales lost 94% between 1958 and 1992. For some counties the impact is devastating. Devon lost 89% of its orchards between 1946-2003 and Kent 92% during the same period.
In 2007 we imported nearly 70% of our apples. Apples from the southern hemisphere and other far away places fill our supermarket shelves – even in autumn, the height of our apple season.
In 1987, there were 1,500 apple growers; in 2003, there were only 500.
And the good news!
Hundreds of Community Orchards are being created up and down the country, more people are planting fruit trees in their gardens, micro cider-makers are flourishing, old traditional orchards are being valued and conserved by Natural England and others for the richness of wild life they support and thousands visit Apple Day events.
Apple day is the pinnacle of the British apple season which is now in full swing. To celebrate the British apple harvest, Fortnum & Mason invites the public to a Masterclass with Clippy (aka Michelle McKenna), founder of Clippy’s Apples, advocate of the British apple and pioneer in the world of preserves. In time for Halloween, Clippy will teach the secrets behind making Toffee Apple Jam.
Founded in 2008 by Clippy using apples from her back garden, Clippy’s Apples is the award-winning home of British-apple based jams, jellies, chutneys & relishes which are lovingly handmade in small batches.
Clippy’s passion for British apples began when she found out that two-thirds of British apple orchards have been lost since 1970 and Clippy, together with fiancé Paul Gorman, wants to reverse this disturbing trend.
The Fortnum & Mason Masterclass is part of a nationwide tour which sees Clippy ‘Preserving the Nation’ in some of the UK’s most prestigious cookery schools. Clippy teaches her students how to turn apples into chutney or quince into jelly in a matter of hours, making the most of local produce and using a range of exciting ingredients from chilli to chocolate. It all makes sense in these ‘lean’ times. For UK tour dates please visit:
British Apple Pioneer, Clippy, joins forces with Fortnum & Mason for a FREE Apple Preserving Masterclass
Fortnum & Mason, First Floor Demonstration Kitchen, 2.00pm Thursday, 21st October 2010
Tagged in Food And Drink