Nick Marston, managing director of Berry Gardens, and Paul Kelsey, chairman, celebrate record payout to fruit growers at Fruit Focus

by business editor Trevor Sturgess

Fruit growers are celebrating a record £2m cash payout by going the aerial route.

Members of the Tonbridge-based Berry Gardens co-operative will each share in the rebate, which was announced today at the Fruit Focus show in East Malling.

A giant cheque measuring 24ft by 15ft was being flown over the site to mark a successful year.

Berry Gardens, the country's leading berry production and marketing group, boosted turnover to a record £193m for its 63 members across the UK, many of them in Kent.

The company has captured nearly third of the UK soft fruit market. The rebate is the largest every returned to members.

Strawberry and raspberry sales surged to new levels. The UK strawberry market grew by 14 per cent by value and 10 per cent by volume last year, and this season promises further increases with earlier cropping.

The UK raspberry market grew by just over 22 per cent, with sales already 68 per cent higher than the same period last year.

Blueberries and blackberries are also doing well.

Paul Kelsey, Berry Gardens' chairman, said: "Everybody gets a share and it's based on their turnover. It allows them to re-invest in their business. It's more than last year and our vision is to increase it again this year."

He added that Berry Gardens had done well selling the crop and creating the marketplace, and growers had done a very good job in filling it with the right fruit.

Fruit Focus features more than 100 exhibitors and is expected to attract 1,200 visitors.