Changes to European Union subsidies have either forced suppliers of the popular Nordmann firs out of business on the continent, or made them push their prices up by as much as 20 per cent. As a result the Nordmann, Britain’s favourite variety because of its ability to hold its needles, could be replaced by the much maligned Norway spruce, which sheds needles and is often said to be bald by Boxing Day.
But one of Northamptonshire’s biggest suppliers, William Miles, has reassured customers they should still be able to get the tree of their choice. Mr Miles, who runs a Christmas tree farm of 12,000 trees in Welford, said: “The subsidies have caused a problem for growers in the continent, which means a lot of them have put their wholesale price up by 10 or 15 per cent.