Business

Leeks arrive early in Tesco stores this summer from north Down

Roy Lyttle pictured with Tony O’Neill, manager of the Tesco Newtownards store and son, Alexander Lyttle at their farm in the Ards peninsula
Roy Lyttle pictured with Tony O’Neill, manager of the Tesco Newtownards store and son, Alexander Lyttle at their farm in the Ards peninsula Roy Lyttle pictured with Tony O’Neill, manager of the Tesco Newtownards store and son, Alexander Lyttle at their farm in the Ards peninsula

LOCALLY grown leeks from the Ards Peninsula are already available on Tesco shelves, earlier than usual this year, thanks to the advanced growing methods of local farmer, Roy Lyttle.

Mr Lyttle has been supplying Tesco Northern Ireland with leeks since 1997 from his farm just outside Newtownards which he runs with his wife Sheila and their son Alexander.

He explained how the gap of waiting for local leeks to hit our shelves was cut from the usual 18 weeks to just six, thanks to a few tricks of the trade.

"With very careful planning, using south facing fields with light soils for early crops and covering the plants in fleece to speed up the growing time, we have been able to reduce the period of imported produce to just six weeks, which is great news for us and for customers,” he said.

The typically winter vegetable used for soups and stews has seen and upsurge in usage in the summer months thanks to cookery shows and influence from other culture's cuisine.

Caoimhe Mannion, marketing manager of Tesco Northern Ireland, has welcomed the early arrival.

"Tesco Northern Ireland is passionate about sourcing the freshest Northern Irish produce and we are delighted that the great effort of our supplier has paid off and locally grown leeks will be available in all our stores from the 18th of July,” she said.

Leeks featuring a distinctive ‘Grown in North Down by Roy Lyttle’ sticker are now available in Tesco stores across the north.