Responding to Defra’s publication of the independent review into labor shortages in the food supply chain, NFU Deputy President Tom Bradshaw said: “We are pleased to see the independent panel recognizes that action is needed to improve British farmers’ access to a skilled and motivated workforce.
“Ensuring we have enough workers, both permanent and seasonal, is essential to maintaining domestic food security and providing British consumers with high quality, nutritious, climate-friendly food. Our own recent survey looking at worker shortages across the agriculture industry shows that 41%1 of respondents reduced the amount of food they produced due to being unable to recruit the essential workforce needed.
“The horticulture and poultry sectors have been severely impacted by worker shortages in recent years, and we welcome the panel’s recommendation to secure the Seasonal Workers Scheme beyond 2024. We have been calling for a long-term 5-year rolling scheme to guarantee businesses have the certainty they need to continue producing food.
“Our survey results also show that over 77% of respondents said the difficulty in recruiting workers was down to a lack of applicants, so the panel’s focus on the need to boost recruitment, training, and upskilling of domestic staff is positive to see and TIAH (The Institute for Agriculture and Horticulture) has a key role to play.
“We must now work together to solve the labor challenges impacting the industry, which is a brilliant one to work in and has many opportunities across all levels. I look forward to hearing the government’s response to the panel’s review and recommendations, which are essential in giving businesses the confidence to invest in our food security.”
Source: nfuonline.com
