Because it is too expensive to raise their crops, some fruit growers in Britain are cutting back on their output. Since 1882, the Smith family has raised apples on a property in southeast England. However, Smith is currently demolishing his apple orchards. Kent is home to Smith’s farm. Thanks in part to its apples, the region earned the moniker “Garden of England” hundreds of years ago. However, Smith is no longer making money from the crop. “I don’t really want to get rid of all of my fruit, but I simply cannot see a way of overcoming all of the challenges,” Smith stated.
He claimed that selling red apples to big-box retailers has not been profitable in recent years. There are issues with the weather and labor shortages. The last year’s inflation drove the situation to a breaking point. Smith stated that in order for the crop of 2022 to break even, stores would need to pay him 20% more than they did a year prior for each wooden crate of apples. Supermarkets, though, provided 0.8 percent more. For Smith, the offer was the final in a string of bad things. He added, “If I stop growing fruit, I can make money,” outlining his intentions to move away from apples and instead focus on raising cattle, planting a vineyard, and operating a farm store.
Supermarkets claim that the rising overall cost of living forces them to keep pricing low. According to industry figures for March, food price inflation reached a record high of 17.5%. Supermarkets are represented by the British Retail Consortium (BRC), an industry association. According to the BRC, most of the food that its members eat comes from Britain. Supermarkets are aware that farmers must receive a fair price from them in order to sustain food production, according to the BRC. “Retailers are paying more for their produce given the pressure on British farmers at the moment,” stated Andrew Opie, Director of Food & Sustainability at the BRC.
Leave a Reply