The wet start to the year and multiple heatwaves during late spring and into the summer have led to a poor crop of fruit in Jersey. The apples available to harvest are well below the usual number and thousands of them are required to carry out the traditional cider making at the festival using a horse-powered stone crusher and wooden press filled by volunteers.

Nicola Lucas, Jersey Heritage’s Community Events Curator, has organised ‘La Faîs’sie d’Cidre’ for 12 years and says she has never known there to be such a shortage of fruit available for the event, which is kindly sponsored by Ogier and takes place at Hamptonne on Saturday and Sunday, 17-18 October.

She said: “We usually collect about 80 large sacks of fruit from the main orchard that supplies us with cider apples for ‘La Faîs’sie d’Cidre’. We’ll be lucky to fill two sacks this year and are also hearing that any apples that have been harvested are not offering much juice. Although we often do a public appeal for Islanders with apples trees and orchards to help us to top up supplies, this year is different – we need their help to ensure the event can go ahead as planned.

“There is no question that the festival will take place but we will have to adapt the format if we are unable to significantly increase the number of apples currently available. We will still share the traditional cider making methods of crushing and pressing, but there will be fewer demonstrations and it is unlikely we will have freshly pressed apple juice available for people to sample. Adult festival-goers will, of course, be able to try last year’s cider vintage!”

The poor apple harvest in Jersey reflects the situation in the southwest of England, where cider makers have warned they are facing small harvests leading to lower cider production, although bolstered by apples stored from last year.

It is not yet known where the 2026 apple harvest in Jersey stands compared to other years but archive documents show that in 1894, a terrible harvest of apples after months of rain was described

in a Royal Jersey Agricultural & Horticultural Society’s (RJAHS) Annual Report as “one of the worst on record”, with a large quantity having to be shipped in from France.

On average, a total of 160 sacks of cider-making apples are used at ‘La Faîs’sie d’Cidre’ to celebrate the Island’s cider making traditions at Hamptonne. Although the number of apples available this year will impact the cider making in the Cider Barn, the popular event will still offer festival-goers the opportunity to enjoy live music, entertainers, creative activities, dancing and delicious food.

Niamh Lalor, Practice Partner at Ogier in Jersey, said: “’La Faîs’sie d’Cidre’ is a much-loved celebration of Jersey’s heritage and community spirit. We’re proud to support an event that keeps these traditions alive for future generations, and we hope Islanders with spare apples will get behind the appeal so that this year’s festival can be enjoyed in all its glory.”

  • Anyone with spare apples of any variety – cider or otherwise – that can be used to bolster supplies for ‘La Faîs’sie d’Cidre’ is asked to drop them off at Hamptonne from Monday, 12 October onwards. Please ensure the apples have intact skin (bruised is acceptable) and are bagged.