Mansfields: November 2007

English Braeburn – a variety once thought impossible to grow in the cold English climate, has proven very successful and is producing higher volumes year on year. Few years ago Paul Mansfield saw the potential in growing English Braeburn and now with 162,837 trees in the ground on over 185 acres, he is one of the biggest Braeburn growers in UK. Braeburn is a first class desert apple which has a unique combination of sweet and tart flavour. It is believed to have been discovered as a chance seedling in New Zealand in 1950s, possibly a cross between Granny Smith and Lady Hamilton apples. It is thought that its name probably comes from the Braeburn Orchards, where it was first grown commercially. The texture of the Braeburn is crisp, firm (without being too hard), and juicy- it snaps cleanly with every bite, realising a rich apple flavour- refreshing and sharp with a good balance of sweetness. It is a late season apple picked in late October until mid November and has a long storage life. It is great for snacks and salads, its eating qualities make it adaptable for cooking as well as fresh use. The future of the English Braeburn looks even brighter as over the next few years more and more will become available. As reported earlier this season we were very excited and looking forward to a bumper crop because of the warm spring and the wet summer but unfortunately on few of our sites we are hit by heavy hail destroying 20% of our crop. Nevertheless the picking of the Braeburn has begun in full swing and they will be available on the shop shelves later on this year.
This year our BBN production is estimated to be 170 thousand cases, with Paul Mansfield is the largest single man grown in UK

About Us

Located in Kent, the Garden of England, Mansfields is one of the largest growers and packers of top, stone and soft fruit with over 35 years of experience. The family run business is the biggest UK apple grower and the largest UK cherry grower, whilst also growing pears, plums and strawberries in significant volumes. Mansfields is one of the only UK top fruit operations that is expanding both fruit production and packing facilities. The company comprises of over 3,000 acres of top fruit (dessert apples, culinary apples and pears), stone fruit (cherries and plums) and soft fruit (strawberries), which are grown on 15 locations in Kent at varied geographic locations in order to extend harvest seasons and to mitigate weather related risk. The main storage and packing site is located at Nickle Farm on the outskirts of Chartham village, six miles south of Canterbury on the A28

Corporate Social Responsibility

Mansfields seeks to recognise our responsibilities to our suppliers, customers, and staff and the way we impact on our social and physical environment. We have adopted a Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy (CSR) to position ourselves as a leading company in the provision of English fruit that meets the very high social and environmental expectations of our customers. Our CSR strategy details our visions, governance, structure and management systems and our key targets and objectives. We have set objectives and targets against our key environmental, social and economic priorities.