Could we one day be picking our own fresh strawberries as we walk down the supermarket aisle?

A glimpse into this fantasy fruit future was provided at the Marble Arch branch of Marks & Spencer.

A multi-sensory experiment took place, giving shoppers a strawberry aroma to evoke the outdoors and then the chance to pick fruit from plants growing on the shelves.

Bompas and Parr’s futuristic plan dubbed Fruit Fantasia was commissioned by trade body British Summer Fruits which believes shoppers could be picking their own fresh strawberries from plants growing on supermarket shelves within a few years.

BSF chairman Laurence Olins said: "The idea of having the fruit ripening in store so that consumers can pick them at their best and try the exceptional varieties could really help future sales.

"The soft fruit industry is at the forefront of innovation. Plant breeders raise tens of thousands of seedlings each year and only about one per cent go forward for further trialling.

"The whittling down to just a single superstar berry will take up to 10 years, until the chosen one is presented to the supermarkets to test on their consumers."

BSF predicts a £325 million record year of British strawberry sales in 2015, beating a previous record of £275mn in 2014.