A strawberry born and bred in the county is set to take centre stage at a state-of-the-art glasshouse created by entrepreneur - and text-buddy of Prime Minister Boris Johnson - Sir James Dyson.

The man behind the vacuum cleaner range which bears his name, has been developing his Dyson Farming enterprise in Lincolnshire which aims to develop efficient and sustainable farming practices.

Now he's added a 15-acre glasshouse which has just welcomed its first strawberry harvest - the Malling Centenary - which was bred at NIAB EMR in East Malling. It is the only variety grown at the site.

Dyson Farming expects to grow 750 tonnes of the variety each year for UK consumption. The first crop has been harvested, and delivered to M&S, Waitrose and Tesco, meaning that British grown strawberries can replace imported varieties and minimise food miles.

Professor Mario Caccamo, managing director of NIAB EMR, said: “Our breeding programme which created the Malling Centenary variety epitomises the approach taken by Dyson Farming, using science and innovation to improve the horticultural industry’s productivity and environmental performance.”

Dyson Farming has also been supported at its Lincolnshire farm by Berry Gardens, based in Linton, near Maidstone, a longstanding industry partner of NIAB EMR. Berry Gardens provided industry leading and specialist genetics, technical and marketing support services to help bring the first Dyson strawberries to market.

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