Fresh produce
Sour, bitter-peeled Seville oranges have arrived, while southern hemisphere grapes are excellent and supplies of good South African plums are beginning to come on.
Peaches and nectarines are also plentiful and lychees are at their cheapest. English coxes are at their best right now while forced rhubarb is arriving from Holland. The frost is hindering many products but is boosting winter vegetables. King cabbages and sprouts continue to do well and parsnips, beetroot and turnips are at their best and reasonably cheap.
While Sterling has rallied a touch recently, it is still relatively low and this, combined with cold weather caused serious shortages and price-hikes in supplies. Leeks, broccoli, cauliflowers, celery and Savoy cabbages are pricey, with cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, flat and curly parsley and roquette on their way up.
Courgettes have steadied, but at quite a high level. Pears are scarce and dear due to the change of seasons and bananas are up in price too.
Source: 4˚C - 020 8558 9708 - www.4degreesc.com
Fish
There are good supplies of line caught fresh Pollock and sea bass from the south coast, and there have been fruitful landings of brill and Cornish sardine fillets.
Dover sole is down in price, and there is good quality British octopus from Cornwall which is fetching about £4.80 per kilo. British squid has been landed in good quantities, while plenty of skate from north Devon and langoustine from Scotland is available.
There have been good landings of cod and haddock from sustainable sources in Iceland, and there is a plentiful supply of fresh seafood – with an abundance of cockles, mussels, clams and razorclams.
Game
There is currently good quantities of most game – with hare, pheasants, partridge, woodcock and mallard. Wet weather has meant that there are very few rabbits and wood pigeons, but supplies of venison are plentiful.
Meat
Meat is all available in good supply at the moment, with the price of beef and lamb on the increase for seasonal reasons. Pork supplies are stable and there are suckling pig is in full swing.
Source: Chef Direct - 01275 474707