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Factual: Food & Drink

Harvest track the pioneering journeys that go into growing and harvesting our British food

Every summer the British harvest bursts into life. We are there in the heart of the action, witnessing our harvest as a year's hard work culminates into a few critical weeks.

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Harvest: Harvest 2013

Gregg Wallace

Philippa Forrester

Stefan Gates

Tim Martin

Tim Scoones

Steve Evanson

Harvest: Harvest 2013: Episode 3: Fruit: Sweet Treats

Factual

Fruit: Sweet Treats

Episode 3

Episode 3: Fruit: Sweet Treats

Harvest 2013

BBC Two - Harvest, Harvest 2013, Fruit: Sweet Treats

Gregg Wallace and Philippa Forrester visit a pioneering cherry grower in Herefordshire.

Gregg Wallace and Philippa Forrester visit a pioneering cherry grower in Herefordshire. Gregg also gets involved in the Scottish strawberry harvest.

Right across our countryside it's harvest time. Gregg Wallace and Philippa Forrester are down on the farm revealing the results of this year's harvest as it comes in. This is the spectacular climax of the farming year, when fortunes are won or lost in the attempt to put food on our plates. Our farmers have spent all year carefully tending their crops helped by the very latest science, but they are still completely at the mercy of our fickle weather. Can they put a disastrous 2012, the coldest spring for 50 years and a scorching July behind them and work their magic to bring in a bumper crop? 

In this third episode it's all about the 2013 fruit harvest, as we visit a pioneering cherry grower in idyllic Herefordshire. Gregg and Philippa join farmer Andy Hunt as his workers struggle to pick 40 million cherries by hand in just a few short weeks. The cherry was once Britain's favourite summer fruit but the traditional 20-metre trees were too tall for the speedy harvest demanded by the supermarkets. Amateur grower Philippa discovers how farmer Andy has nurtured remarkable new dwarf cherry trees over years to help bring about a revolution that's put British cherries back in our shops. Gregg joins the well-drilled squad of 250 pickers to discover how to harvest cherries quickly by hand without damaging the delicate fruit. Stefan Gates reveals why winter chill, pollination and ripening are so critical to a good crop. Gregg takes part in the Scottish strawberry harvest to discover if they can claim the sweetest strawberries in Britain. And Philippa discovers how blackcurrants must be harvested by extraordinary machines in a matter of a few hours before they ferment on the trees.

For the first time on TV, the series will reveal an early Harvest report for the UK, which will give an indication of which crops are likely to be the winners and losers in 2013. Fruit has had a bumper crop this year but which have been the sweetest of all? Harvest 2013 tells the story of food through the high and lows of a remarkable year of weather.

Harvest 2013 is supported by BBC Learning who have a produced a booklet to explain the science behind producing UK crops together with recipes from Gregg Wallace using harvest produce. 
The booklet will be available online at www.bbc.co.uk/Harvest.

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A celebration of the British harvest following the story of vegetables, cereals and fruit.

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Episode 3: Fruit: Sweet Treats

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