white strawberries

The recent launch of White Pearl strawberries that ‘taste like pineapple and vanilla’ in M&S Foodhalls was met with scepticism by UK breeders and controversy among the public

The peculiar strawberry variety arrived in Marks & Spencer stores on 17th January, with the retailer claiming to be the rst on the UK high street to launch the fruit.

The strawberries are white on the inside and outside with red seeds and have been described as “sweet like a red strawberry, with an aroma of pineapple and notes of vanilla” by the retailer.

While the retailer is expecting a high demand for the novelty fruit, the launch has sparked some controversy among the public. Some shoppers nd the colour of the berries o -putting, while others have called the origins and credibility of the variety into question on social media.

Aiming to put consumers’ minds at ease, M&S explained the White Pearl was naturally developed in Japan by crossing Japanese white strawberries with traditional red varieties to create the right size and quality.

Meanwhile, UK strawberry breeders are sceptical over the viability of white strawberries in the wider soft fruit market. Grower Nick Darby from Beeren Plantproducts believes the White Pearl will be of little interest to British growers as it’s an imported variety that would be di cult to produce commercially in the UK climate.

“I have no doubt there’s a niche market for them and there are M&S shoppers who will be prepared to pay a premium to have something di erent,” he told Fruit & Vine

Currently retailing at £4 a punnet, the new Collection White Pearl strawberries command a higher price than their conventional reverse counterparts.

Jean-Sébastien Berger, sales manager at Dalival, commented: “To date, there are few green, disease-resistant varieties on the market. Canopy will therefore be able to meet a real demand from growers and consumers. For this reason, we have decided to make this variety available to as many fruit growers as possible in a very wide area.”

“As a premium-priced product, they are not going to replace traditional strawberry sales and I doubt that there’s a place for them on the shelves of the main grocery supermarkets,” Mr Darby remarked.

“White strawberries are nothing new but have never been of much commercial interest. If anyone wants to grow some at home, then there’s a variety called Snow White (bred in Germany) that will happily produce fruit in the UK and is available from a number of sources.

“However, it can be a little soft so is unlikely be suitable for the UK supermarket trade – more PYO and farm shop.”

Adam Whitehouse, project leader in strawberry breeding at NIAB, con rmed white strawberries have little history in British soft fruit breeding to date.

“We did develop some white strawberries several years ago, one of which found a market in the amateur gardening sector. We are of course interested to see how this product develops and how customers react.”