Hall Hunter Part'ship

The Hall Hunter Partnership is a family business which grows strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries for UK consumers. It is a leading supplier, through The Berryworld PO Ltd., of soft fruits to consumers through supermarkets. The Hall Hunter Partnership, due to its locations, mainly supplies Waitrose and and Sainsbury’s. Waitrose Bracknell depot of Bracknell for example is 15 minutes away from Heathlands Farm and the PO is very conscious of food miles.

In addition, soft fruits are also grown by the partnership on Birchin Inhams Farm (45 acres) and 9 Oaks Farm (30 acres) next to Heathlands Farm, as well as Ponds Farm, 34 acres near Shere in Surrey.

British soft fruits are among the tastiest and best in the world. Their fulsome flavours and consistently high quality makes them ever more popular among consumers. An excellent source of vitamin C and fibre, they are increasingly sought after by health-conscious shoppers.

Until 1998, soft fruits such as strawberries and raspberries were seasonal crops that were available mainly in June and July. For the rest of the year, imported fruit was flown in at considerable expense and damage to the environment. Today, modern production methods have extended the season from April/May to mid/late autumn.

Seventy of the 469 acres at Tuesly Farm are converted to organic farming of soft fruits. 2005 was our first season and by the end of July 2005 we achieved yields of 45 tonnes of class 1 strawberries.

The aim for organic fresh produce producers is to develop a bio-system that provides a balanced habitat for beneficial insects and soil pathogens to create the best possible environment for a plant to grow strongly and have the ability to protect itself against pest and disease.

The foundation for good organic farming is to develop a soil which has good cation exchange capacity, has good water retention abilities and is well aerated.

The Hall Hunter Partnership achieves this by growing green manure crops such as vetch, clover and mustard that provide nutrients and organic matter to the soil to enhance the soil structure and improve aeration. The soft fruit crop is introduced after the green manure.

Farmyard manures and compost are incorporated into the top six inches of the soil to again add nutrients and improve soil structure, aeration and cation exchange.

Soils are cultivated with deep sub-soils to ensure free draining soils and use power secondary cultivation machines to give a fine tilth and again, increased aeration.

Soils can contain pathogens and nematodes that are harmful to soft fruit crops. To help control harmful pathogens, The Hall Hunter Partnership grows a bio-fumigant crop such as mustard or Sudan grass, while using marigolds another natural way to help control nematodes.

There are a number of pests that damage soft fruit and these are able to be controlled with other predators in the wild, called “Beneficials”.

It is important to grow a habitat that encourages these species to colonise in and around the soft fruit crop. This is done by growing wild flower mixes and, believe it or not, nettles!

The fields are surrounded by beetle banks for this reason but also to encourage beetles which feed on vine weevil, a very problematic pest for strawberries.

Strawberries
The Hall Hunter Partnership have been able in recent years, through trial and error, to grow Elsanta – the main variety grown on conventional soft fruit farms. In addition Florence and Everest is grown.

It is essential that soft fruit crops are covered to ensure they are not lost to grey moulds and rain damage. Tunnels have been the single most important tools used in the successful production of organic soft fruit.

The Hall Hunter Partnership is fully aware of our role as stewards of the countryside for this and future generations. The Company history has been in providing high-quality, fresh produce to the consumer and they will continue to work to improve quality and availability while reducing any negative effects on the countryside.

The Company does of course already comply with all Government regulations and guidelines on the use of chemicals but we go further than that. We want to reduce – and, if possible, eliminate – the need for artificial fertilisers, pesticides and other chemicals, and The Hall Hunter Partnership is carrying out valuable work in this area that the other members can learn from.

That's why The Hall Hunter Partnership are at the forefront of experiments to discover other, more natural ways of enabling sustainable soft fruit production on our farms, working with industry and academics from across the UK. We're also very keen to involve and inform the next generation of the importance of conservation farming and taking care of our environment. We regularly invite local schools to visit The Hall Hunter Partnership and hear about the conservation work we're doing.

As part of the environmental management of our properties, HHP has been establishing wildlife/beetle banks and field margins to provide a suitable environment for indigenous hedge species.

Tuesley Farm has, for example, been divided into 10-acre blocks and around each field we have beetle banks/margins creating an environment for insects that help us to naturally control pests and reduce our applications of protectants. The Hall Hunter Partnership have established 6 km of wildlife/beetle banks and margins and a further 5 km of indigenous hedge species on the farm.

In Spring the beetle banks and field margins are in full flower with poppies and cornflowers, which is excellent news for pollinators. Nettles are also known to provide a good habitat for predators feeding on aphids.

According to British Summer Fruits (BSF) – the national organisation for soft fruit growers - British growing protocols are the strictest in the world.

This means that our fruit is delivered straight from the fields to the supermarket shelves, ensuring consumers that they are getting the freshest, healthiest and best-tasting fruits that can be found.

BSF is made up of six marketing companies that together deal with 98 per cent of all the British-grown soft and stone fruit supplied to UK supermarkets. Each of the six companies has dedicated growers who are contracted to supply fruit for them exclusively. The Hall Hunter Partnership markets its fruit through The Berryworld PO Ltd, whose main customers are Waitrose, Tesco and JS.

All the associated growers – including The Hall Hunter Partnership – and the pack houses adhere to both the Assured Produce Scheme and British Retail Consortium (BRC) protocols.

This means that all UK-grown fruit is produced using good agricultural practice and is packed in facilities that comply with BRC standards. This results in a very safe product grown by producers who are independently audited every year.

The Hall Hunter Partnership has been producing organic fruit for several years and is one of the most experienced organic berry growers in the country. In 2005, the first organic fruit will be picked from a 70 acre site at Tuesely Farm. The methods used are licensed and approved by the Soil Association.

A number of organisations carry out annual audits of the farming operations at The Hall Hunter Partnership. These cover every aspect of farming including planting, soil erosion, crop nutrition, pollution, energy efficiency, water management, conservation and working practices and conditions. The organisations are:

 Assured Food Standards’ Red Tractor