The current shortages of fruit and vegetables have been described as a direct result of soaring input costs and the imbalance of power in the food supply chain.
This is according to the vice-chair of the Irish Farmers’ Association’s (IFA) field vegetable and protected crops committee, Martin Flynn.
The imbalance of power in favour of the main retailers has driven margins for growers so tight that it’s inevitable the current shortages will become more common in the future, he warned.
Stating that all horticultural glasshouse crops, strawberries, field vegetables and potatoes are in danger of further decline if changes are not made and support is put in place, Flynn said:
“It’s clear from the current shortages of vegetables from Spain and Holland that retailers cannot rely on imported produce. The first step that retailers must undertake is to listen to their grower suppliers of Irish produce.”
Without retail and government intervention, Ireland will see more horticulture growers exiting food production and an intermittent shortage of the country’s food supply, he added.
Fruit and veg
As this week marks one year on from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Flynn said there is still “huge concern” around the outlook and the cost of inputs and energy, with gas prices still four times higher than the average of the previous decade.
While the Horticultural Exceptional Payment Scheme (HEPS) did alleviate some pressure for certain horticultural sectors last year, this support must be put in place again this year, he said.
The IFA vice-chair explained that higher costs for growing crops compounded by the price pressure from food buyers means that there is no room to account for events such as weather or input cost spikes.
“High energy prices have meant that growers cannot afford to heat glass in our sector for early crops.
“We are tired of hearing from government that more Irish produce is required when we simply cannot afford to expand the shoulders of our season,” Flynn said.