Resolve the situation about seasonal workers and extend the energy bill relief scheme beyond its current cut-off of next March are two steps the government could take to help the horticulture industry, MPs on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs cross-party committee heard in November.
Giving evidence to the committee’s inquiry into food security, NFU president Minette Batters said access to people is holding growth back, particularly in the field vegetable sector. Increasing the number of seasonal worker visas would “give a lot of certainty to growers who are literally losing their businesses [to imports],” she said.
Ed Barker, head of policy at the Agricultural Industries Confederation, said extreme volatility in the wholesale price of gas is playing havoc with fertiliser manufacturers’ ability to plan ahead and budget for production, and thereby putting availability in jeopardy.
“You can’t just turn fertiliser production on and off,” he said. “We need farmers to have the confidence to make purchases. If no-one’s buying your product, there is serious difficulty in justifying the continuation of production.
“Given that all of our competitors in Europe and the United States are intervening in their own fertiliser sectors directly, it seems completely remiss for the UK to do nothing.”
Freshfel, the trade body representing the European fresh produce industry, has warned the EU and member states that medium-term food security is at risk because of the economic pressures on growers and traders, saying ‘many are at risk of serious hardship and even bankruptcy.’
It says unlike other areas of food production, the fresh produce sector has been unable to pass on the high costs of energy and other inputs to consumers, adding that ‘these can no longer be absorbed in the supply chain.’
Freshfel delegate general Philippe Binard says EU businesses are also now operating on an ‘unlevel playing field’, as each member state introduces its own support policies.
“We are estimating the sector’s added energy costs to be around €6.8 billion for the current season,” he said. “Retail prices in other food sectors have risen 15-20% as additional costs are being passed to consumers.”
Freshfel has now called on regional, national and EU decision-makers to take ‘all necessary actions’ to assist the sector. Among its demands are exemption for fresh produce businesses from gas and electricity supply interruption and energy price caps set at EU level to avoid distortion of competition.
In the longer term it says there should be more support for development of innovative energy-saving technologies and more on-farm energy production to reduce growers’ reliance on grid networks.
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