Despite the usual demand boost provided by Mothering Sunday, daffodil growers have reported that flowers have had to be left in the field due to a lack of pickers.
Lee Abbey, Chief Horticultural Advisor at the National Farmers’ Union warned that an increasing number of members report that crops are going un-harvested with workers reluctant to travel to the UK due to factors including the uncertainties around Brexit and a fall in the value of the pound.
Cornish grower Jeremy Hosking who grows more than 70 ha of daffodils near Truro, said, “A large proportion of our crop has gone unpicked.” If repeated across the main growing areas of Cornwall, Lincolnshire and Angus the lack of workers could have a severe impact on a sector that is worth around £45 million a year.
In Lincolnshire, Matthew Naylor, Managing Director of Naylor’s Flowers, added, “There are lots of factors at play. The uncertainty that we face with leaving the EU is certainly not helping.” He added, “On the ground, as a British employer, we don’t have the reputation we used to have as a place to better yourself. They are skilled people. I would never call this an unskilled job. We have some people earning £1,000 a week. We’re having to work a lot harder with advertising and perks to retain them.”
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