+33 680 38 14 46
UK agricultural sector short of seasonal workers
United Kingdom
Tuesday 24 May 2022
FJ
If the current situation continues, the volume of production will be reduced, as will the supply of stores (Photo: euronews.com).
In parts of the UK growers face a difficult situation with sometimes only 25% of seasonal workers needed to harvest
According to an article in The Grocer, shortages of seasonal workers are raising fears that there will not be enough labor for this year's harvest and therefore a shortage of UK produce in the coming months. weeks and the next few months.
The article reports shortages ranging from 30% to 75% of workers needed for harvesting in parts of the UK. For British professionals, the search for labor is now a "permanent challenge" and is becoming a "quite desperate" quest.
The main reasons would be the stoppage of the flow of workers from Ukraine as well as the government policy concerning visas for seasonal workers. The agricultural sector has urged the government to act immediately to grant the additional visas that are needed for the crops.
High season is approaching and according to Julian Marks, Managing Director at Barfoots: "By June and July the farms should be running at full capacity, and it will be of absolutely no use at that time for anyone to announce that more labor is expected in August and September".
In some regions, the shortage of seasonal workers is such that salad growers have stopped harvesting, as well as mushroom growers and asparagus growers. If the current situation continues, the volume of production will be reduced, as will the supply of stores.
source : thegrocer.co.uk, edp24.co.uk
