Ag sector shows resilience to weaker pound
Brexit threatens UK fruit and veg supply
Leaving the European Union without a trade deal would weaken the pound further, “leading to even higher prices of imported foods, which mostly applies to fresh produce,” Sara Petersson, nutrition analyst at Euromonitor International said in an emailed statement.
“With such dependence on foreign agriculture, at its current state, the UK is unprepared to feed its own people,” Petersson said.
The domestic agriculture sector is also heavily reliant on seasonal, migrant labour, which could be threatened by Prime Minister Theresa May’s plans to reject the EU’s free movement of people and take the UK out of the single market.
“The UK’s exit from the European single market is expected to result in changes in tariffs in food trade between the UK and the EU,” said Peterson. “Rising tariffs are likely to lead to high prices for fruits which may eventually affect the consumption of certain fruits that the UK is heavily reliant on importation from the EU over the 2016 – 2021 forecast period.”
Despite the falling value of the pound, The agriculture sector has proved extremely resilient since last year's Brexit vote. This has been reported by the Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks, which are both part of plc CYBG, after its staff analysed Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) figures.
These statistics showed the total income from farming contracted by 7.5 per cent to £3,963m in 2016, compared to a decline of 27 per cent the previous year. The 15 per cent drop in the value of Sterling since last June should provide further support to the sector this year.
source: busisnessinsider.nl, inthebay.co.uk
