Strawberry shortage on the cards

A mild winter and increased demand could mean a shortage of strawberries this Christmas.

General Manager of Auckland firm Best Berries Phelan Pirrie says temperatures were higher than usual this winter, so strawberries didn't get the "chilling" time they normally would.

He says it's affected production earlier in the season.

Mr Pirrie says while the farms are irrigated, they desperately need rain to keep production up.

"We've got temperatures now like we had in early-mid January and that tends to be what knocks production out. So if this weather continues then leading into Christmas there could be some shortages."

Mr Pirrie says the early onset of warm weather has also seen demand for strawberries increase sooner than usual.