Growers have moved to reassure the public that there will be no shortage of vegetables or potatoes this Christmas, despite extremely challenging conditions created by the exceptionally wet weather.
“There’s been plenty of media coverage in recent days on potential potato shortages ahead of Christmas. We always see these stories in the press in the lead up to Christmas, and once again there is confidence across the industry that we won’t be running short of potatoes for your Christmas dinner,” commented NFU Potato Policy Group chair Tim Rooke. However, he also called on retail customers to relax specifications early in the season to prevent crop shortages later.
Jack Ward of British Growers explained that growers have been supplying the Christmas market for a long time and are very adept at dealing with the pressures. “What doesn’t help is pre-Christmas discounts, which stimulate buying and puts more stress on supply,” he warned. “This may lead to growers harvesting more now to meet demand, and then we may see shortages in February and March.
“This is a difficult season on top of previous difficult seasons, with increasing costs, and if growers are putting in their all and not seeing the returns, it can really erode grower confidence. Cauliflower in 2015 was £1, they are now selling at £0.95p in one major retailer, this is reflected in the comparisons for other vegetables. There is just not enough money in the systems to reward everyone, including the retailers.”
Despite such warnings, reports suggest that the average costs of a Christmas dinner for four people has risen much less than other food products, while some items, such as Brussels sprouts, are actually cheaper than this time last year in stores. Aldi has been particularly aggressive in its Christmas marketing – announcing last month that it had ‘invested’ £12 million in cutting the prices of more than 180 iconic Christmas products. The retailer expects to sell 1,400 tonnes of sprouts over the festive period.