Farmers across the Irish Sea are warning that drought and record-breaking heatwaves are making it “harder, riskier and more costly” to produce food.
So when I saw an article this morning predicting food shortages and rising prices, I wasn’t remotely surprised.
While many people bask in the sunshine and pray the rain never returns, too few understand what this weather means for farmers; the custodians of our land and the people who feed us.
Anyone who regularly reads my opinion pieces or listens to Welcome to Friday will know my immovable passion for food production and the people behind it.
You’ll also know my frustration with the largely unexposed general public who complain about rising food prices without grasping why, or who prioritise imports over our home markets.
Food Shortages
Farmers have been forced to harvest some crops early to stop them dying in the heat. Others, including cereals, are producing poorer yields because the weather simply hasn’t allowed them to grow.
If the yield is lower, why is food more expensive? Two reasons:
- Demand vs production: When there’s less of something, its value increases.
- Production costs: Whether the yield is excellent or terrible, the cost of producing that crop is the same. Farming doesn’t get cheaper just because the weather ruins the outcome.
Away from crops, fields now resemble beaches. Grass growth has stalled, forcing livestock farmers to use winter feed in July. And if winter feed is being used now, farmers will have to buy more later, assuming they can get it. Silage doesn’t come off a supermarket shelf; it has to be made.
Not Charity
Like any business, those costs must be passed on. Many farms simply cannot absorb them. If they tried, they’d go under, and then we’d have no food. “No Farms, No Food, No Future” stops being a slogan and becomes reality.
This should concern everyone, especially on an island that imports 94% of its food. If UK supermarkets are already struggling for produce, they will not prioritise a small island in the Irish Sea. Believing otherwise is naive.
This is why we must support our home markets. Losing them would mean higher costs, no security, and a gaping hole in our circular economy.
Where Do You Think Food Comes From?
This week’s “Lobstergate” highlighted how disconnected some people are from food production. Some were offended by seeing a live lobster in a tank. I hate to break it to them, but that fillet steak was once a cow. That leg of lamb was once a lamb running around a field. Food does not originate on a supermarket shelf.
If you don’t like seeing a lobster in a tank, fine, buy one already prepared. But understand that you will not get more sustainable lobster than the one in that tank. And if you’re offended by that, I hope you care just as much about the traceability of your food. I hope you’re not someone who buys the cheapest chicken without checking where it came from or how it was raised.
Fresh lobster from a tank is also more affordable than prepped lobster. So congratulations, you may have priced someone out of fresh, sustainable food.
Wake up
People need to wake up. Know where your food comes from. Support ethical, humane farming, which we have here on the Isle of Man. And if you don’t like it, don’t eat it. But don’t ruin it for those who do.
