Call it the Crown Jewel of Fresh Produce.
Angus Soft Fruits of Scotland and commissioned food artist Prudence Staite recently unveiled a beautiful masterpiece of 400 AVA Magnum strawberries in the shape of a crown to celebrate the King’s Coronation, the Scottish season and Wimbledon.
The stunning creation – 30 inches long and 30 inches wide and weighing 8kg – took 50 hours to complete.
“It felt fitting for us to celebrate His Majesty’s Coronation year and inaugural Wimbledon, where the nation comes together to savour strawberries, with this incredible piece of art,” Jill Witheyman, Head of Marketing at Angus Soft Fruits, said. “The AVA Magnum represents a true triumph in the world of strawberries, where flavour, sweetness, and quality converge to create an extraordinary sensory experience.”
The heart-shaped strawberries, grown in the north-east in Perthshire, Fife and Angus, have become a summer delight for consumers. Because of ideal climate this time of year, sugar content builds slowly inside the strawberries, making them super sweet upon picking. AVAs are sold in premium lines, including M&S Red Diamond, Aldi’s Specially Selected, Sainsburys’ Taste the Difference, ASDA’s Extra Special and in Costco as AVA Berries.
Some 87,000 tonnes of strawberries will be grown this year, and nearly two million of them alone will be eaten during Wimbledon.
But what will happen to those that appeared in the crown from Angus?
“The strawberries will now be skillfully transformed into strawberry jam and gifted to friends of AVA Berries,” Witheyman said of the crown, which was an homage to St Edward’s Crown used in this year’s Coronation.
Staite’s other notables works include an edible labyrinth comprised of 10kg of Belgian chocolate for the launch of the Maze Runner films, a replica Angel of the North made out of chips, and a We Wish You a Merry Christmas playing chocolate vinyl.
