Shropshire Star

In Video: Bird’s eye view captures fields of purple

Oil from echium and borage can be used in cosmetics, food and remedies.

Published
Fields of echium in full flower in the village of Feering in Essex

Drone footage shows flowering echium plants as a vast sea of purple.

Fairking Ltd has been growing echium and borage for more than 30 years and now farms over 6,000 acres of the flower, which is harvested for seeds.

Fairking Ltd co-director Andrew Fairs inspects his crop of echium in the village of Feering in Essex
Fairking Ltd co-director Andrew Fairs inspects his crop of echium in the village of Feering in Essex (Joe Giddens/PA)

Oil is then extracted and used in cosmetics, food and nutraceuticals to treat high blood pressure, high cholesterol, rheumatoid arthritis and skin conditions such as eczema.

The success of the crop relies solely on the natural pollinators in the area including bees, hoverflies and butterflies.

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