“Shipping is a terrible thing to do to vegetables. They probably get jet-lagged, just like people.” – Elizabeth Berry.
With the winter seemingly never ending, it’s nice to hear that warmer weather is finally on the way.
But while most of us pack away our winter coats for another year those in the farming, horticultural and food industries can take little comfort in the given the damage they have suffered.
Rural bankruptcy, soaring food prices and lack of consumer confidence all suggest the economy could be drifting towards another triple-dip recession later this month.
There is widespread fear that a farming crisis could unfold if crops are not sown by the middle of April before the optimal sowing period ends.
Freezing temperatures and drifting snow has led to mass losses of livestock.
A national body revealed there has been a 16 per cent rise in dead sheep and six per cent in dead cattle from last year.
But as snow starts to melt it looks like these figures will continue to rise.
So what about crops that many of us depend on to create our products?
The bad weather has ravaged some crops so badly that Britain is expected to become a net importer of wheat later this year for the first time in a decade.
Last year’s wet summer saw more than two million tonnes of wheat lost and the recent cold winter means this season’s stock could again be blighted.
Some garden centre owners in London have reported a drop in sales of as much as 46 per cent and next month’s Chelsea Flower Show could also be badly hit with some growers and designers struggling to get plants ready in time.
How has the poor weather affected what you grow in your garden? Are you worried some of your most loved foods will be in high demand?
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