Scientists in the county have served up what they believe is set to be a game-changer strawberry - the traditional treat of tennis tournament Wimbledon.

The Malling Ace variety could transform the fortunes of growers in the UK by providing fruit throughout the year while, they claim, retaining the quality of "the best June strawberries".

First selected in 2015 and trialled in 2017 at the horticultural research facility in East Malling, NIAB EMR, after successful commercial trials in 2019, the variety has now been fast-tracked to get it to market.

The variety, developed by the NIAB EMR team led by strawberry breeder Adam Whitehouse, is an ever-bearer which can crop consistently from May to September, and may even offer potential opportunities for vertical or urban farming as the industry looks towards novel production systems required in the future.

Vertical farming uses 50% less water and has a 90% lower carbon footprint but has yields five times higher than normal production methods.

Growers currently plant ever-bearers to secure a later crop but it is June-bearers which traditionally peak during Wimbledon fortnight that offer the best quality strawberries.

Professor Mario Caccamo, managing director of NIAB EMR, said: “Malling Ace offers a real opportunity for growers to meet the increased demand for high quality British-grown strawberries throughout the season. Although it is a couple of years until we can see Malling Ace on the supermarket’s shelves, we are already working with partner propagators to grow the variety and make available plants for growers soon.

"Our research scientists were part of a global research initiative to plot the genome of the strawberry. Thanks to this level of understanding will be able to breed future new varieties that will continue to meet consumer demand for great tasting and attractive looking fruit.”

The variety will be launched at Fruit Focus, the country’s leading technical event for the fruit industry held at NIAB EMR later this month. The breeders believe Ace will join other commercially successful varieties developed at NIAB EMR including the Malling Centenary launched in 2013, which is now selling more than 70 million plants a year.

Adam Whitehouse said: “While most new varieties fill important niches in the cropping pattern for the UK strawberry sector, Ace offers the prospect of game, set and match for the industry by creating an ever-bearer variety with consistent high yields of top-quality fruit.”

The new varieties are the result of the breeding programme based at NIAB EMR, which is funded by the East Malling Strawberry Breeding Club, a public-private partnership.

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