Good news…our asparagus supply wasn’t hit by the volcano ash…because we never air freight.
Bad news…the same cannot be said for some Abel & Cole-ers. Affected by the ash, that is!
We’re glad to say that the eruption in Iceland, that saw hundreds of thousands of British holiday makers and imports of all kinds stranded at airports, had very little effect on our fruit and veg supply.
Supermarkets on the other hand, had no choice but to watch their shelves empty as their imported supply depleted during the time planes were grounded. In fact, we have heard many stories of people realising with shock just how much their local supermarket imports using air travel, and the consequent food miles. It has also blurred the lines of seasonality…so it may not be common knowledge that the best time for English asparagus is right now, not in February!
Environmentally, the great news is that nitrous oxide pollution around Heathrow apparently dropped by two thirds during the time planes were grounded due to the eruption! There is some great info about the environmental impact on this website. As a consequence, much of us saw some particularly beautiful sunsets and peaceful skies. Tom from customer services enjoyed what was probably the most peaceful day in Kew Gardens in the last 50 years!
Of course there were negative implications as well! Another one of the team who you might have spoken on the phone to, Gabby, was stranded in Denmark and had to fork out for an expensive ferry ticket just to find the flight ban lifted before she set sail, and our finance director Ted (who you’ll all know from his very flattering picture in a previous post!) was stuck in Zimbabwe when the ban began!
We know a lot of you were affected by this as well, so please feel free to tell us about your experiences in the comments below. Or how you smugly enjoyed your ‘no air freight required’ fruit and veg!
Alan from Customer Services
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
01 May 2010 at 21:19
The week of the ash, we too were crowing about how our veg supply from A&C wouldn’t be effected as no air miles are used. Sadly we were on holiday that week so we’d had to cancel our order! While on holiday (in West Sussex) we spotted an A&C van on its rounds. Have you ever considered making deliveries to your customers if they are holidaying in self-catering accommodation in parts of the UK where you already deliver? It’s a long shot, but we did miss our weekly veggies from you!
02 May 2010 at 19:25
The skies were so beautifully clear when there were no planes, I was really enjoying it!
On the other hand, it would be quite difficult visiting my family if I could never fly. Perhaps we should only allow flights 2 days a week…
03 May 2010 at 12:43
a change for all those who do not remember 1930′s plane free skies, and a great meory lane trip for those who do! Were your staff flying to find find air freight-free food?
03 May 2010 at 15:39
It’s great to hear that other people were able to find a positive side of the flight ban!
Esther- the good news is that you can already have your delivery to a holiday home if you are in self-catering! All you need to do is change over your address on the website or give us a quick call and we can do this for you, we can even arrange to have the address automatically changed back when you get home. It would need to be within our delivery area and your delivery day may change. We’d hate for you to have to miss out on your weekly veggies!
Alan
18 Jun 2010 at 10:29
I noticed this morning that my apples are from New Zealand, and not long ago I received pears from Argentina. Are these being shipped? That’s a long journey for a piece of fruit….
21 Jun 2010 at 22:31
I too noticed my apples were from New Zealand – doesn’t feel quite in the spirit of what I would expect from Abel and Cole. Especially when your website lists apples as being from Kent…. what’s the plan?
23 Jun 2010 at 11:38
Hi Cath and Lucy… Good spot! Our apples do come from New Zealand at the moment. As you know, we strive to get as much as possible, as locally as possible, but the British apple season doesn’t run all year round unfortunately. As it’s one of the staple fruits and a lot of our customers are apple lovers, we venture further afield so they can appear in the boxes. We never air freight any of our produce, so the apples are shipped over from New Zealand for us. Homegrown apples are traditionally stored over the winter – so we can eat them when it’s too cold to grow fruit – so in a similar vein, the NZ apples are stored too, just whilst in transit. We’re starting to get some lovely British summer fruits (which we’re really excited about!) so you’ll see more of those in your box over the summer! If you have any more questions, please call us on 08452 62 62 62.
27 Jun 2010 at 22:03
Well said! Jess and I couldn’t help feeling a little smug knowing our fruit and veg would get through, despite the volcanic fall-out recently. I also want to take this opportunity to say that we have been shopping with you for about a year now, and can honestly say that we (Jess was sceptical at the start) enjoy:
The great selection and quality of the fruit and veg boxes;
‘Christmas’ arriving every fortnight, delving into our boxes;
The tasty recipes we have tried;
The humour and chattiness of the website and literature;
The beautiful fish (cheaper than Sainsburys);
and lastly, we are determined to say hello to our delivery driver again, even if it means we get up 5 o’clock in the morning! Since the round change he seems to get earlier and earlier, unless of course he is trying to avoid us that is!
Keep up the excellent service.
Margaret
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