Looming food crisis,what can uk ag industry do?

Red Fred · Apr 24, 2022

7610 super q said:
As an aside, I can't be the only one pished off with the daily social media feed of veganism, farmers harming wildlife, farmers destroying hedges, farmers poisoning the soil, farmers cruel to animals, farmers responsible for climate change, farmers clogging up the roads.........

II has become a religion where they despise anyone with a different creed, even if you are aiming for a similar result. I was trying to explain calmly how our environment scheme led us to revert to permanent pasture as it is bleeding obvious that at the cost of maybe a calf for every couple of acres, you are actually enabling the lives of thousands of native creatures and wildflowers, so in fact our aims at benefitting animal lives are the same, but all I got was the usual hatred for the death of the calf. The 40 years spent managing our patch in the most sympathetic way possible counts as nought when they can copy and paste a ropy study of Oklahoma feedlots which they use to" prove" their point.

Lowland1 · Apr 24, 2022

7610 super q said:
As an aside, I can't be the only one pished off with the daily social media feed of veganism, farmers harming wildlife, farmers destroying hedges, farmers poisoning the soil, farmers cruel to animals, farmers responsible for climate change, farmers clogging up the roads.........

When in recent times and by that I mean the last 40 years or so have farmers been popular . It's always been farmers ripping up hedges, knocking down trees , overproducing, subsidised, strawburning, factory farming etc etc.

Red Fred · Apr 24, 2022

On a positive note, I often notice that the folks who most often chip in in support of meat and farming are not actually farmers, they are just everyday folks who can see through the propaganda and hate being called murderers by connection.

Tarw Coch · Apr 24, 2022

Lowland1 said:
When in recent times and by that I mean the last 40 years or so have farmers been popular . It's always been farmers ripping up hedges, knocking down trees , overproducing, subsidised, strawburning, factory farming etc etc.

Pretty much all influenced/directed by government farm policy.
We are where we are due to successive governments policy but no one ever seems to point the finger at them

som farmer · Apr 24, 2022

doesn't it go something like, 'you reap what you sow'
they have certainly sowed the seeds, but they won't like the harvest.
but farming is a business, and we, as farmers, have to make longer term decisions, than politicians have to. And to be honest, looking at the longer term, food production doesn't look like meeting demand. However, we are not at the point, where politicians actually realise that, and until they do, its better to assume they don't. And to make our business decisions, based on what we do know, rather than what our hearts tell us.
Fert price has concentrated farmers minds, some say its still good value, others its to dear, whatever happens, it will be used more judiciously, and perhaps on poorer ground, not justified at all.
I live in hope, our NFU, are sending the right message to politicians, in the correct way, alas, l suspect not. But things are changing, quite rapidly, certainly faster than politicians can cope with.
An interesting year ahead, l think.

Cowcorn · Apr 24, 2022

Kiwi Pete said:
Exactly, and the barley that grows will be as good if not better.

That's really where farming gets/can get pulled in half by itself, what goes out the gate next year is likely very little different to what went out 450 years ago, but what is bought in is a completely different story

low input farming might cop a lot of sh!t, but still tends toward being more profitable 100% of the time

An uncle of mine long since gone to plough upstairs was an all arable farmer on a fairly small farm in the fifties and sixties .
An extremely tidy and thrifty man he used to marvel at other farmers wore out machinery with neglect or changed just to have the latest fad ..
One of his favourite expressions was " God knows once or MAYBE twice in a lifetime was enough to have to buy something
At his retirement auction all his gear made more than he had paid for it 20 odd years before .

Tarw Coch · Apr 25, 2022

Cowcorn said:
An uncle of mine long since gone to plough upstairs was an all arable farmer on a fairly small farm in the fifties and sixties .
An extremely tidy and thrifty man he used to marvel at other farmers wore out machinery with neglect or changed just to have the latest fad ..
One of his favourite expressions was " God knows once or MAYBE twice in a lifetime was enough to have to buy something
At his retirement auction all his gear made more than he had paid for it 20 odd years before .

There was a time when I thought a 20 year old machine was old.

I’m now at the stage where I’ve got some 20 year old machinery and it doesn’t seem like I’ve had it that long

Age doesn’t half alter your perspectives

midlandslad · Apr 25, 2022

Asda and Morrisons cut prices as supermarkets fight for customers

Morrisons and Asda launch new promotions as households face pressure from the rising cost of living.

www.bbc.co.uk

DrWazzock · Apr 25, 2022

midlandslad said:
Asda and Morrisons cut prices as supermarkets fight for customers

Morrisons and Asda launch new promotions as households face pressure from the rising cost of living.

www.bbc.co.uk

Good on them. Hopefully the money to bridge the gap between our input price inflation and their retail price deflation is coming out of their own shareholders and employees savings accounts because it certainly won’t be coming out of mine.

DaveGrohl · Apr 25, 2022

midlandslad said:
Asda and Morrisons cut prices as supermarkets fight for customers

Morrisons and Asda launch new promotions as households face pressure from the rising cost of living.

www.bbc.co.uk

Just on the whole supermarkets cut prices to help shoppers advertising con;

Mrs Grohl’s been raging in the last few days about Tesco selling regular Cadbury Mini Eggs bars for £1 before Easter. Then they put a wrapper round them saying Happy Easter and were selling them at £4.99. On Saturday they had a huge sticker on them saying reduced to £2.49. The exact same bar that they sell elsewhere in the shop for £1 still. The lady on the checkout was actively telling people about this scam over Easter to anyone that had said choc bar on her belt. She couldn’t abide the blatant fleecing of customers and was doing her own version of "every little helps". I’ve no idea if she’s still in a job.

So when a supermarket tells you they’re reducing prices don’t you ever believe it….

EDIT; I’ve now been told I never listen. Must be all those years of noisy PA systems. It was a card shop and Tesco are entirely innocent

Not something I ever thought I’d post.

som farmer · Apr 25, 2022

i would imagine the system of pricing products in s/mkts, would leave us in shock/confusion. But we all know, whatever their bean counters do, s/mkts make excellent profits. They do get rather worked up, over mkt share, so one can presume the large profits, are partly reliant on volume.

Ffermer Bach · Apr 25, 2022

Tarw Coch said:
All I’m saying is watch how you phrase things because in the words of the police, anything you say may be taken down and used in evidence against you.

som farmer · Apr 25, 2022

anybody think the guv realises the full effects of rising food prices ?
people will have no option, but to pay up, there is no other industry, that is fundamentally so important to life, without food, is death. Increasing consumer spend on food, means less on other things, that consumers think, are vital to them, which will mean less tax income, more unrest, political changes etc. And we, as farmers, hold the upper hand, for a change, our leaders, should utilise that, but they won't.

holwellcourtfarm · Apr 25, 2022

Treg said:
YAGRO How did Britain tackle the food shortages in World War II and what changes had to be made to Agriculture?

How did Britain tackle the food shortages in World War II and what changes had to be made to Agriculture?

yagro.com

Much of the environmental decline behind current environment policies was founded in the "dig for victory", a fact conveniently overlooked by many.

4course · Apr 25, 2022

mrs 4 course is in charge of the family shopping budget and in checking with her some of the receipts for the last 4 months it has gone up by over 10%., However the one noticeable finding from scouring these receipts yesterday is that buy buying a bigger bottle the price of the content/litre has fallen, im refering to gin!!!

holwellcourtfarm · Apr 25, 2022

DrWazzock said:
The political idea that we can just open up the production throttle sums up the naivety of those who rule us.
The resources just aren’t available. The funding isn’t available. Costs and regulatory obstacles are too great. What don’t they understand about that?

But that's what the Crop Protection Association are shouting at every opportunity....

DrWazzock said:
Like it or not, as farmers we are presently underpinned by manufactured nitrogen fertilisers. Take that away and we are screwed big time, as is the country’s food supply.
Not a lot of people in government seem to appreciate that.

If you are willing to think differently output can be sustained without the Haber Bosch process in many cases....

DrWazzock · Apr 25, 2022

holwellcourtfarm said:
But that's what the Crop Protection Association are shouting at every opportunity....

If you are willing to think differently output can be sustained without the Haber Bosch process in many cases....

I think the CPA have been treading water for a long time. Cereal fungicide resistance constantly bites at their heals. Yields have plateaued or gone backwards.
Can’t see how Haber Bosch can be replaced at the moment. There are things in the pipeline that show some slight promise but nothing that will be ready for when we need it …. next spring.
Clover leys and much more ruminant red meat in the diet might be a way forward but can hardly see that gaining traction with the present crowd in charge.
What else? Lupins, beans, peas? Could just about make some sort of edible gruel or better from them. Wheat flour bread looks as dead as corduroy going forward without Haber Bosch.

som farmer · Apr 25, 2022

l can just about remember the last horse here, it was 'retired', and running with cattle, gran insisted it stayed, that must have been early 1960's.
But, ww2 had a profound effect on farming, it revolutionised it. And those policies, ended up with over production, and price drops, and surpluses, not only in the UK, but right across Europe, which produced massive stocks, held in intervention stores, wine lakes, butter mountains etc.
Where did those stocks go, some exported to 3rd world countries, in need, but it all went, and now, there are no surpluses, they have gone. Food is becoming shorter.

Both these points, have been caused by political interference, the first, by absolute need, the second by guvs wanting to avoid a re-run, of food shortages, which as farming methods improved, food production increased, until it became surplus, then the policy changed, to control production, set aside quota's etc.

That policy has now caused a problem, the policy of reducing production, has now gone the other way, food is becoming scarcer. And yet, guv policy, is aimed at decreasing it further. One can only wonder what politicians actually think, not a lot, is probably right. But, all the above, has been caused/resulted by political interference, and its very obvious to sensible people, ie, not politicians, that politics will alter future food production, when they finally realise green policies, will reduce product. Seeing as politicians have completely ballsed-up farming, for decades, by policies aimed at cheap food, how will they completely f-up future food policy.

JeepJeep · Apr 25, 2022

Tesco Clubcard takes the pee aswell.

I've noticed a lack of stock in local Aldi & Morrisons. And the Standard of the Meat. has gone down.. Scrappy looking and poorly cut

som farmer · Apr 25, 2022

DrWazzock said:
I think the CPA have been treading water for a long time. Cereal fungicide resistance constantly bites at their heals. Yields have plateaued or gone backwards.
Can’t see how Haber Bosch can be replaced at the moment. There are things in the pipeline that show some slight promise but nothing that will be ready for when we need it …. next spring.
Clover leys and much more ruminant red meat in the diet might be a way forward but can hardly see that gaining traction with the present crowd in charge.
What else? Lupins, beans, peas? Could just about make some sort of edible gruel or better from them. Wheat flour bread looks as dead as corduroy going forward without Haber Bosch.

like it, or not, we have to reduce reliance ,on no longer cheap, chemical fixes, they are not particularly nice environmental products, and it is sensible to reduce use.
Its the 'how' that's the problem, and while there are alternatives, they need further research.

Looming food crisis,what can uk ag industry do?

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100% I’ve had enough of farming!

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