Mansfields: Crop and Weather Summary

December

The month divided into three roughly equal parts - an unsettled period for about the first third of the month, followed by a generally anticyclonic spell and further unsettled weather for the remainder of the month. Rainfall across the UK generally close to average, some parts of eastern England received less than half the normal amount for the month- averaged over England and Wales, the month's total of 83mm which was 15% below average. As for the temperature, the cold spell mid-month roughly balanced with the milder periods early and late. As a result, December 2007 (like November) was generally colder than that of 2006 but warmer than that of 2005.

All crops are in dormant stages. Pruning of pears nearly completed, apples well on the way and 90% of all Stone Fruit has been now pruned.
Soft fruit sites dormant general tidy up of damaged tunnels.

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.