Why Are UK Strawberries So Big Right Now?

There’s nothing like biting into a juicy strawberry in the sunshine – and it looks like there will be plenty of opportunities for that this summer. Berry lovers may have noticed the UK’s supermarket shelves are filled with giant versions of the beloved red fruit, but why are British strawberries getting bigger?

Giant Strawberries Have Arrived In The UK

Supermarkets are reporting an abundance of supersized strawberries, which are approximately 20 percent larger than average, and weighing up to 50g, in comparison to the usual 30g.

This is the result of a bumper crop following all the sunny spring weather we’ve been enjoying. Bartosz Pinkosz, the operations director at the Summer Berry Company, told The Guardian: ‘We had the darkest January and February since the 70s but then the brightest March and April since 1910. From March onwards it was really kind of perfect for tunnel strawberries.’ He added that some of this year’s berries are growing to the size of plums and kiwi fruits.

Not only are strawberries bigger than ever, the weather has also enhanced the taste, and brought strawberry season forward. As Ben I’Anson, Senior Fruit Buyer at Ocado.com, explains: ‘2025 is shaping up to be the summer of strawberries. The perfect combination of a cold winter, followed by one of warmest and brightest springs on record, has brought us an abundance of great tasting, British-grown strawberries. Strawberry season is also tracking about a week earlier than last year, thanks to the extra sunshine – resulting in some of our juiciest and sweetest early berries ever.’

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This bodes particularly well for Wimbledon. The tennis tournament is famous for its strawberries and cream, a tradition which dates back to the event’s beginnings back in the late 1800s.

According to The Met Office, the UK is experiencing its driest spring in over a century. And while this is great news for strawberry fans, the Environment Agency has warned it also means there’s a ‘medium’ risk of a summer drought. 

It’s a stark difference from last year’s strawberry season, when the fruit was delayed from ripening after one of the wettest winters on record.