Drought Likely to Impact UK Food Prices Says NFU

The organisation predict that the impending UK drought could raise prices of potatoes and other vegetables.

Mar 13 2012 --- The National Farmers Union has warned of the impact on both arable and livestock farming, and is asking for restrictions on agricultural water use to be avoided wherever possible.

The organisation predict that the impending UK drought could raise prices of potatoes and other vegetables.

Farmers have reportedly planted 80% of the area they usually fill with crops, and are expecting lower than average yields.

Grass quality will continue to worsen, raising costs for farmers for re-seeding or resulting in reduced livestock numbers.

NFU Deputy President Meurig Raymond said: “Farmers and growers take water management extremely seriously. It is good to see that constructive dialogue between water companies, the EA, government and farmers, as well as better forward planning, has ensured that water resources have been available for essential uses such as food production.

“Most agricultural production in England and Wales is rain-fed, with only one per cent of water resources nationally being taken from ground and surface water sources for agricultural use. The NFU is now discussing with water companies how drinking water will continue to be made available for livestock and with the EA on how restrictions on crop irrigation could be phased in to allow advance planning and use of voluntary restrictions wherever possible.

“People need to realise that there is no quick fix to this issue. Increasing investment in on-farm water storage capacity will be vital going forward. To that end the NFU would urge to reinstate the tax relief for the cost of farm reservoirs in next week’s Budget.”

Heavy rains could yet stave off the worst of the impacts, but forecasters are predicting drier than average conditions for the next few months.

Meanwhile, the area formally in drought is expected to extend beyond south-eastern counties to include parts of Yorkshire.

Counties that have received much less rainfall in recent months also include Shropshire and Somerset.

Farmers have already adopted a range of measures including:

• Voluntary restrictions – mainly in the Anglian and south eastern areas, farmers are regularly meeting with the EA to discuss possible voluntary restrictions which hopefully act to reduce the chance of formal Section 57 spray irrigation restrictions being applied in summer 2012. For example, the Lark Abstractors Group have agreed in principle to a 20 per cent reduction in licensed groundwater volume for this year. This demonstrates teamwork between farmers and growers and the EA at a local scale at an early stage to attempt to limit impacts of restrictions on farming businesses.
• Farmers have changed irrigation practices such as night irrigation to reduce water loss (but increases costs)
• Cultivation changes ie minimum tillage