The sudden arrival of warmer weather after a dismal, cold and wet spring, has quickly brought on an abundance of British strawberries.

This has meant that many growers have more strawberries than they expected and supermarket chain Tesco has moved in to help take some of the extra crop.

As a result of the surplus, Tesco has bought an extra 400t of British-grown strawberries.

Taking more crops from suppliers when they’re in abundance, and offering them to customers, is part of Tesco’s ongoing work to tackle food waste wherever it occurs – from farm to fork. Tesco believes that no food that could be eaten should be wasted.

Tesco berry buyer Laura Mitchell said:

“Last week’s heatwave brought the strawberries on very quickly and meant that many growers had more than they expected.

We’re happy to help out, as British-grown strawberries are renowned for their wonderful, sweet taste and when in season, they are one of the first things to go on shopping lists.

“With great weather forecast for the coming week, and therefore lots of BBQs and picnics, we’re glad to be able to provide them for our customers.”

Strawberries have grown in popularity in the last 12 months with demand up 12% on the previous year.