Sainsbury’s has become the first supermarket to sell home-grown white sweetcorn, introducing it into its Taste the Difference range.

The corn, which is usually only grown in the US, is being cultivated on 50 acres in Enfield, north London, by a farmer who fled Zimbabwe. David Mwanaka is exclusively supplying Sainsbury’s stores inside the M25 area through category manager Barfoots of Botley.

“I am on a mission to get the UK eating white sweetcorn,” he said. “It’s fantastic to eat and even sweeter than the usual varieties. It has long been a favourite in the US and I can’t wait to see the response here.”

Mwanaka has been growing a chewier Zimbabwean variety of white sweet corn for several years and supplying it to restaurants and delicatessens. But it is the first year he has produced the US variety.

It is harvested slightly later than conventional sweetcorn, with the season running from late August to October.