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Britain faces tomato shortage as bad weather squeezes supply

Britain is facing a tomato shortage after bad weather in Morocco and Spain left importers struggling to find them.

Supermarket shelves have been left bare after a weak crop in key markets and the imposition of tighter restrictions on exports from Morocco.

“Difficult weather conditions in the South of Europe and Northern Africa have disrupted harvest for some fruit and vegetables, including tomatoes,” said Andrew Opie, director of food & sustainability at the British Retail Consortium.

Britain relies on Morocco, the Netherlands and Spain for tomatoes over winter. Importers have become increasingly reliant on Morocco in the wake of Brexit, which has slowed the trade in fresh produce with Europe.

However, crops in Morocco have been poor this year after flooding and cold temperatures. Surging fertiliser prices in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have also hit yields.

Harvests in Spain have also been weak following persistent cold spells.

Earlier this month, Moroccan authorities imposed a ban on the export of tomatoes, onions and potatoes to West Africa, amid concerns about food security and soaring prices.

Shoppers took to social media this week to share pictures of empty fruit and vegetable bays in supermarkets.

Mr Opie at the BRC said: “Supermarkets are adept at managing supply chain issues and are working with farmers to ensure that customers are able to access a wide range of fresh produce.”

A spokesman for the British Tomato Growers Association (BTGA) said shortages were “predominantly a consequence of the lack of imported product”.

They added: “The British tomato season will soon begin and we expect significant volumes of British tomatoes on shelves by the end of March and into April 2023.”

Tomatoes are the latest item to run low on shelves, with shoppers also facing a struggle to source eggs. The worst ever outbreak of avian flu and soaring costs have thinned out flocks of laying hens across the country.

Farmers have repeatedly warned of mounting pressure on the industry from soaring energy and fertiliser prices.

The National Farmers Union (NFU) has warned Britain is at risk of “sleepwalking” into a food crisis. In December, the NFU warned that the country could face shortages of items including tomatoes and cucumbers over the coming months.

NFU vice president David Exwood said: “We are repeatedly seeing a predictable combination of factors such as energy costs and weather leading to empty supermarket shelves. Our UK food resilience is currently gone. The government needs to take this seriously.”

Pressure on supply has led to rising prices, with the cost of a kilogram of tomatoes rising from £2.09 in January 2020 to £2.96 last month, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics. Prices have risen particularly sharply since the start of last year.

Source: Telegraph.co.uk

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