UK: Salad day at Westminster to back British produce

A giant pepper and Cucumber helped raise awareness of British salad crops when Essex growers headed to Westminster yesterday morning. Glasshouse growers from NFU specialist branch Lea Valley Growers met with MPs to celebrate National Salad Awareness Day, coinciding with the first 2013 crop of British cucumbers from the area.

Mascots Pippa Pepper and Colin Cucumber joined Robert Halfon MP for a photocall on Westminster Bridge before heading to a meeting at Portcullis House.

Lea Valley Growers secretary Lee Stiles said: “With renewed emphasis on buying quality British food this is the ideal time to be raising awareness of the centuries’ old Lea Valley glasshouse industry.

“Our members produce up to 75% of the UK’s cucumbers and 50% of the UK’s sweet peppers, and they could grow more if the planning system allowed them to do so.

“A key message we delivered is the enormous potential for glasshouse growers to expand but there needs to be more emphasis on glasshouse food production within the planning system.”

Association chairman Gary Taylor MBE requested a meeting with the Secretary of state for Communities and Local Government on behalf of the British Glasshouse industry to discuss how government can support the industry through the planning system and back British produce.

Harlow MP Robert Halfon said: "I'm very proud that my constituency includes the largest concentration of cucumber and pepper growers in the UK.

"The greenhouses and nurseries there are second to none and they are world beaters, growing high quality salad crops."

"I strongly support the efforts made by Roydon & Nazeing nursery growers to ease restrictions holding back their businesses. We should do everything possible to support them and encourage economic growth."

Shoppers can buy cucumbers from the Lea Valley by looking for Essex or Herts on the label.