UK farmers say they have had “the worst year they’ve ever known” after extreme weather decimated their crops. The poor yield after a year of floods, cold snaps and dry spells will also impact food intakes next year, farmers warned, as food inflation becomes increasingly out of control.
It comes after a study found that climate change has contributed to an over £600 in household bills, much of which is based in the soaring price of food. Oli Harrison, owner of an arable farm near Prescott, Merseyside, told BBC Radio 4 that an entire field of maize had been ruined by recent weather, following an incredibly difficult year.
He said they were now “salvaging it with a combine harvester” to take the kernels from it – what popcorn is made out of – to make a high-protein animal feed.
He added that his field of wheat has been “under water for about two weeks on and off” with not enough surviving “to be a viable crop”.
Mr Harrison explained that farmers faced a very dry February, followed by a wet April, completely dry June, and then a flood in July.
“It’s the worst year I’ve ever known,” he said, adding: “The mood in UK agriculture at the moment is the lowest I’ve known it.
“We can’t wait for the year to be over, if I’m honest.”
Concerns have been raised over a shortage of potatoes for Christmas this year after Storms Babet, Ciaran and Agnes ravaged crops.
Experts warn it is expected to hit a record low of 4.1 tonnes, with retailers forced to supplement supplies from cold storage. As well as potatoes, crops of Christmas dinner favourites like broccoli and cauliflower have also been affected by the poor weather.
In 2022, drought hit production of basic foodstuffs such as potatoes and onions in the UK, followed by an unusually wet harvest in 2023, and then the hottest September on record.
The National Farmers’ Union (NFU) said their members’ crops were rotting under water, and called for the government to put in place a water strategy to prevent such losses.
Heatwaves across the Mediterranean, India and South America this year have also all had a major impact on food production and prices.
Olive oil rose in price by 50 percent following two years of drought and heatwaves in Spain and other major exporters in southern Europe. Meanwhile staples such as sugar, rice and tomatoes were affected by extreme weather, such as droughts in India.
The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) thinktank said that global heating was directly contributing to the cost of living crisis. Researchers found that more extreme or unseasonal weather accounted for one-third of all food price inflation in the UK this year.
While energy prices have fallen back this year after a surge prompted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and Rishi Sunak has met his pledge to halve inflation in the UK, concerns remain over the continued impact of global warming on food prices.
It is also impacting access to healthy food. A report from the Food Foundation found healthy food was already twice as expensive as unhealthy food per calorie, while the cost of sustainable alternatives to meat and dairy can also be high.
