Egg shortage could be replicated with crops unless supermarkets become realistic about margins – column
In our latest Word on the Ground column, farmer Edward Gent warns of potential crop shortages unless supermarkets become more realistic about their margins...
After a challenging spring period when the weather has made field progress very difficult, we are catching up with the spring work.
Crops have gone in the ground this spring, in not the best conditions on many occasions.
Fields are now starting to green up around a month later than planned.
It will be interesting to see how these late established crops turn out, going in this late we will need some ideal weather to get the best out of them.
Planning how much to spend on late drilled crops is a very difficult job, we want to get the best crops we can but the reality of what we can achieve is very much out of our control.
Retailers have always been very much trying to protect their margins and keep prices under control for the consumer, but with cost increases for us all and decreasing margins it focuses the mind on how we can make the food chain work for us all.
Increasing control from the retailers damages the food supply further down the chain not encouraging much needed investment to allow farm businesses to get nearer to end markets.
Recent shortages of eggs on supermarket shelves should be a wakeup call for the food industry.
For a long time supermarkets would not pay more for eggs and many farmers decided to reduce their bird numbers.
Now with a shortage of eggs, prices to farmers are increasing to encourage more supply.
But it takes a long time to get more chickens to produce eggs so there will continue to be a reduced supply.
The same will happen with crops from the fields, as returns reduce supply will decrease, which cannot be increased quickly.
Many food stuffs could end up with similar problems if prices for the primary producers are not allowing a realistic margin.
The supermarkets need to be realistic about the returns to farmers to encourage investment and a good long term food supply.