Will Hyde on the challenge of food production in the coronavirus pandemic

Recent headlines have hit the mainstream media highlighting difficulties facing fruit and vegetable farmers across the UK, and these headlines have made the population think more about where their food comes from and the huge amount of effort that goes into producing our valuable food products.

Each year, at least 60,000 seasonal workers are needed to help with the intensive task of growing, picking and packing the fruit and vegetables that we all enjoy as part of our summer diet. The farmers that grow these crops are facing enormous difficulties in getting workers to their farms, due to the restrictions in place for coronavirus. Normally a large percentage of the labour force comes from Europe, and this year additional staff have been sourced here in the UK but farmers have also been chartering flights at a significant expense, bringing workers to the UK to ensure the job gets done. Without these extra workers, the fruit would rot, leave the supermarket shelves empty and put huge economic strain on the farming businesses.

The UK consumer has also witnessed disruption to supplies in supermarkets, something that we have not seen for over a generation. Changes to consumer behaviour and challenges within the supply chain have caused this disruption and it has caught people by surprise. Food and supplies are normally readily available, and for this not to be the case has understandably shocked people. Interestingly, it has spurred people on to delve deeper into the production of food. As farmers, we should welcome people’s questions and our replies will help pass on positive messages and help inform consumers about food production for the future.

What’s more, people’s intrepid Googling has led to a resurgence in “growing your own”, with more people enjoying looking into food production and wanting to have a go. People are finding the most ingenious ways to turn small areas, pots and disused containers into mini vegetable gardens and fruit cages. They are learning to appreciate that plants do not ripen overnight, that they require care and attention and they will fail if not attended. It doesn’t matter if it is a piece of kitchen towel with cress growing on it or if half the garden is turned in potato beds; people are learning what it is like to be a farmer on their very own scale. Whether the enthusiasm lasts long into the future is unknown, but the knowledge they have learned is invaluable to the farming sector and overall, this shows the respect that the public have for the job we are doing.