LONDON: The UK could face food shortages until May following bad weather in North Africa and delayed planting at home, a leading farming association has warned.
The Lea Valley Growers Association said supply chain issues currently affecting Moroccan farmers would be exacerbated by UK farmers delaying planting crops due to high energy costs.
The North African country has experienced weeks of cold temperatures, rain and flooding, which have affected farmers’ and suppliers’ ability to harvest and transport crops.
The UK has to import many unseasonal fruit and vegetables in winter, with Morocco and Spain — which has also suffered adverse weather conditions — leading producers of items such as tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and aubergines
The UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs told the BBC that its food supply chains continue to be “highly resilient” in the face of the disruption, despite Environment Secretary Therese Coffey saying on Thursday that shortages could last a month.
Lee Stiles, secretary of the LVGA, said only a quarter of the expected crops from Morocco and Spain were being delivered.
“The majority of tomatoes, peppers and aubergines are not going to be around in big volumes until May,” Stiles told the BBC.
“Some Lea Valley pack houses have closed for a few days due to lack of deliveries, and others are losing workers as they could only offer three hours work a day instead of full shifts over the last few weeks.”
The significant drop in deliveries has led to a number of supermarkets placing restrictions on the quantity of certain fruit and vegetables from Morocco and Spain that customers can buy.
Stiles also blamed the supermarkets for the shortages for not paying UK farmers enough to incentivize increasing production before bad weather struck Morocco and Spain. “It’s too late for UK growers to step in and try and make up some of the shortfall,” he said.
