NFU chief's shock at current levels of produce imports (From Salisbury Journal)
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NFU chief's shock at current levels of produce imports
10:53am Thursday 26th January 2012 in Rural Focus By Anne Connon
NFU president Peter Kendall last month highlighted the “scandalous”
quantities of horticultural produce imported into the UK.
Speaking at the Lincolnshire county AGM, Mr Kendall highlighted the difficulties facing the UK horticultural sector.
He warned that the sector, which he said has seen “rising costs and intense downward price pressure from the major supermarkets”, is rapidly facing a “critical point”, where it will be “given up to imported produce”.
Mr Kendall said: “Profitability has fallen dramatically, input costs have soared, excessive retail promotions are depressing farm gate prices and production has been volatile following last year’s severe winter and dry summer.
“It is little short of a national scandal we are only 60 per cent self-sufficient in vegetable production, and the trade deficit is widening all the time.
“The sector is being driven to its limits and is evidently not coping with the strain.
“It’s clear a critical point will soon be reached whereby, if nothing changes, we will simply see a greater proportion of the UK horticulture sector given up to imported produce.”
Mr Kendall said the problems for the horticultural sector sent out a warning for the rest of the industry and said it was important lessons are learned.
“The main lesson is that, even though the fundamentals of markets remain sound, price volatility is an everpresent risk and we need to be in a position as far as possible both to moderate it and to mitigate its effects, so short-term shocks are not allowed to cause long-term damage.
“We can’t buck the market, but we can do a lot to take the edge off its fluctuations.”
But he concluded: “I remain as optimistic as ever about the longerterm prospects for farming. But even though the trend may be upwards, that doesn’t mean there won’t be significant turbulence along the way.”
