UK production of protected vegetables in 2022 fell by 5.7%, to 247,000 tonnes, for the seventh year in a row, according to provisional statistics published by Defra in June.
Excluding mushrooms, the value of the national crop marketed dropped by 8%, to £235 million, in 2022.
Total area of tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce and sweet peppers contracted by 11% to 709ha. The area of cucumbers fell to 90ha, an all-time low.
At 192ha, the area of tomatoes lost 3ha but marketed yield increased, to 374.5 tonnes/ha, the highest for five years.
Read more news and features from the protected crop industry in our monthly publication The Commercial Greenhouse Grower.
