Yesterday www.Peakfood.co.uk had an article published on pages 10 and 11 of The Yorkshire Post’s Country Week (thanks to Michael Hickling!) It mainly discussed price increases and the threats to future food production and can be read below or on the Yorkshire Post’s web site:
A global problem that needs local action right now
As an East Yorkshire Farmer with 45 years of experience of growing carrots, onions, potatoes and wheat, I’ve known some profitable years, plenty of okay years, and an increasing number of years when we haven’t done much better than break even. Many of my neighbours have been diversifying, or even selling up all together because they see no future in small-scale farming; and my own son stopped working on the family farm two years ago. In my local area I can count on one hand the number of under 30-year-old farmers.
Then we have a year like this one, and suddenly farmers are more optimistic. Wheat, milk, potatoes and egg prices are all climbing. Welcome, overdue news, everyone in the food industry is thinking, and long may it continue.
But are sustained price increases really what we want? Could there be an ominous reason as to why it’s happening?
As I’m sure you know, most foods Read the rest of this entry »
