rates and rises to input costs
brings awhole new emphasis
onwhywe need to continue
to invest just to standstill as a
business.”
New and emerging
technologies such as LED
lighting andwhite box
growing-part of the vertical
farming revolution- are also
being developed at the
company. Mr Conway says
LED trials have been ‘very
promising’ andwhite box
growingwill pose some
interesting questions in the
future aroundwhether herbs
need to be grown under
glass at all. “What it will do, is
give growers the choice of
glass or thewhite box route
and that can onlymean
further opportunities in the
future,” he says. One of those
opportunitieswill be to
continue to help extend the
shelf-life of potted herbs
which, saysMr Conway, is a
definite target area for further
research. Part of that process
also involves the eliminating
of challenging pests and
diseases such asDowny
Mildew, which has been
know towipe out entire crops
of herbs. “That iswhy it is
important that part of our
investment goes towards
workingwith the breeders
and seed companies to
continue to search for better
and stronger varieties of
herbs. “Unlike other living
plants, once herbs go onto
the supermarket shelves they
are generally not watered so
they need to reach that point
in the best possible
condition.” In fact Vitacress
joined forceswith the
University of Southampton in
2014 to undertake a research
project looking at reducing
thewater footprint of herb
productionwhile increasing
the shelf life of potted and cut
herb production in theUK.
Focusing on a range of
potted and cut herbs,
including flat-leaved parsley,
basil and coriander, the aim
of the project was to reduce
the use of irrigationwater
during crop production, while
improving the flavour and
quality of the herbs. It has
already been shown in other
growing systems that
substantial water savings can
bemadewithout detrimental
impacts on crop quality.
Thermal and remote imaging
was used to assess precisely
when irrigation should be
applied, targetingwater to
best effect. “Research
projects like this are few and
far between sowhenwe have
the opportunitywemust
make the best of them,” says
Mr Conway.
He thinks the recent
‘Herbilicious’ marketing
campaign has had a positive
effect on the sector. The
company invested£40,000 in
the consumer-facingpublic
relations campaignwhich
focused on targeting younger
shoppers.
The ‘MakeEveryday
Herbilicious’ campaign aims
to inspire and educate
consumers on how fresh
herbs are an essential kitchen
ingredient and encourage
them to cook regularlywith
them, using content delivered
via social media sites such as
Youtube and Facebook.
“Without a doubt, consumers
aremore engagedwith how
to use fresh herbs and now
we are seeingpatterns of
where herbs are being used in
other products that are doing
well such as herbal teas and
the rise in popularity of drinks
such as Pimms.What we
need todo now is ensure this
interest continues and search
for innovativeways to get the
rightmessages across, at the
right time, to the right people
to help see herbs being used
on awider level,” saysMr
Conway.
It has alsobeen an important
part of the company’s
philosophy to educate its
future customers in the right
way. Earlier this year,
VitacressHerbswelcomed a
number of schools on its site
as part of the Tesco leadEat
Happy initiative, which helps
children have a happier and
healthier relationshipwith
food.
The childrenwere
shown how fresh herbs are
grown and their uses, they
spent time potting their own
parsley andwere given an
assortment of herbs to take
home.The company is
supporting the project by
hosting Farm to Fork school
visits and has developed a
selection of curriculumbased
worksheets for school
children, in conjunctionwith
theBritishNutrition
Foundation.
“Investing time and effort in
projects like this is just as
important as everything else
we do. It is the combination of
continuing to invest in
automation todrive our
business tobemore effective
and efficient alongside
effectivePR and education
that will help ensure future
success,” saysMr Conway.
u
MrConway thinks the recent ‘Herbilicious’marketing
campaignhas had apositive effect on the sector.
What is selling?
According toKantar,
Coriander remains the
top selling herbwith
sales of nearly £18m in
2015. Basil, flat leaf
parsley, mint and curly
leaf parsleymake up the
rest of the top five
sellers. During the festive
period, sales growthwas
seen on traditional herbs
like sage, which
overtookmore exotic
herbs such as
lemongrass for the 12
weeks up to 3rd January
2016.
VitacressHerbswelcomed anumberof schools on its site as
part of theTesco leadEatHappy initiative,
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