UK supermarkets are increasingly selling more exotic fruits. Morrisons is cashing in on Britain's growing taste for sophisticated food by filling its shelves with a new range of strange fruit, red bananas. Grown slower than the yellow variety, the red banana plant takes ten months to fruit, six months to mature and then five days to ripen. A spokesman said the red-skinned fruit with pink flesh is enticing customers.

However, not everyone is so positive on the red banana issue. Andrew Wilby, chairman of the Yorkshire Independent Grocers Association, said: "We work on the system where bananas are yellow, tomatoes are red and green peppers are green. Richard Musgrave, owner of the Orange Grove greengrocers in Bingley Road, Saltaire, said he had tried selling red bananas seven or eight years ago but they didn't catch on. Musgrave said, "It is a bit of a gimmick really. You pay more than for normal bananas and that tends to put people off. And the variety is really small. Also, you can't tell when they are ripe."

Another issue how this affects smaller, independent retailers. Morrisons is stocking a wide variety of produce, making it harder for small retailers to compete with the supermarkets. Michael Barker, of The Grocer magazine, said: "The supermarket’s buying power has a significant effect on independent retailers, but a strong and well-resourced independent can fight back. A good independent will always give a better customer experience. I think, more importantly, people should consider the quality, the freshness and the value for money than a gimmicky colour."

(Source: The Telegraph)