Wolds Beef
Member
Just seen in a national paper, they realise we should be self reliant in PPE and Medicines. No mention of food and harvesting capacity! Our organisations need to get on to this while the topic is HOT.
WB
WB
Self Reliance
- Thread starter Wolds Beef
- Start date
DeeGee
Member
- Location
- North East Wales
Food is always on the shelves so there’s no need to worry about producing it: it’s always there.
Until maybe one day it isn’t, and then food riots might actually become a reality..........
Until maybe one day it isn’t, and then food riots might actually become a reality..........
we don’t have any PR representatives, just a few farmers talking to themselves and each other on twitter !
time to accept that and stop pretending otherwise
I think it's a waste of time TBH. Folks aren't interested in food/ farming anymore, and that's that.
Maybe we've grumbled too much in the past ? Farmers struggling to find pickers, farmers struggling with drought, farmers struggling with floods.......etc, etc.
All people are interested in is the latest tech, new cars, holidays abroad. Even PPE will be forgotten about in 6 months time.
Maybe we've grumbled too much in the past ? Farmers struggling to find pickers, farmers struggling with drought, farmers struggling with floods.......etc, etc.
All people are interested in is the latest tech, new cars, holidays abroad. Even PPE will be forgotten about in 6 months time.
M-J-G
Member
Farmers are always yapping so many people have switched off to it.
Farmers constant complaining and alway having the wind blowing in their face is one thing that p!$$es me off about our industry.
Farmers constant complaining and alway having the wind blowing in their face is one thing that p!$$es me off about our industry.
Goweresque
Member
- Location
- North Wilts
I wouldn't confuse what gets written in tomorrows chip wrappers with what the official view on national policy will be in the Post-Covid world. I have no doubt that a lot of government departments are currently thinking long and hard about issues of self reliance in the future, and that will include Defra as much as the DoH and many others. There will be significant changes throughout government in attitudes to domestic production of all manner of things as a result of this crisis, and we may be surprised how much farmings stock has risen over the last few months.
All these thank a farmer things on FB make me cringe. The last one that was posted locally got berated because there was a shortage of flour on the selves. This was somehow farmers fault. As an industry, we are not respected, and not liked. It needs a severe shortage of food to make the government take notice, and this will alienate farmers in the public's mind further. Even during WW2, no one starved to my knowledge. Dad said you didn't get the food you wanted, had to eat what was available, and some of it was dubious ( powdered egg etc ), but no one starved.
Supermarkets are the heroes. It's somewhat galling that they do 2% of the work, take 5% of the risk, and take 80% of the profits, but there it is.
A fine old rut to be in, for sure.
Supermarkets are the heroes. It's somewhat galling that they do 2% of the work, take 5% of the risk, and take 80% of the profits, but there it is.
A fine old rut to be in, for sure.
Which is why everyone on here who had time should have responded to two Govt consultations in the last 6 months: The National food strategy, and the more recent select committee enquiry into corona and the food chain.
And, accepting that most folks are too busy to have done so, could someone on here from the NFU please share their responses they have made on behalf of the industry.
GeorgeK
Member
- Location
- Leicestershire
I fear the virus has demonstrated our need for imports, not the opposite. We can't possibly produce everything we need, therefore the solution is more resilient supply chains and contingency plans to keep imports flowing. I guarantee measures will be put in place to keep ports, airports and railways bringing supplies in no matter what, rather than encouraging local production
Govt needs to be able to square that with the bigger issue, the one that was here before corona and will be here after corona. That is where the arguments will be won and lost.
ollie989898
Member
Yeah, 100% domestic supplies of PPE and medicines- never going to happen.
I hope you're right but when we have an Equalities minister, a Communities minister and a minister without Portfolio on the cabinet but no Agriculture minister you can see how important we are seen as in Government.
- Location
- South Molton
Very apt I would say
Goweresque
Member
- Location
- North Wilts
What the virus crisis has shown is the need for diversity in supply. That is to say its no good having all your eggs in one basket, regardless of whether thats domestic or imported. And thus the idea that it may be a good idea to have 'some' domestic capacity in important areas will be seen as the way to go. Given food consumption is already subject to large import penetration one would suspect that the pre-virus attitude of 'farming's history, we can import it all' will have taken a big hit. I severely doubt that 'Food from our own resources' will be the outcome of this, but one would hope that it has killed the 'Let farming die and import everything' concept too.
Even today there are plenty of firms that can and are now making ppe, what the gov needs to do is to have a register of those companies and a supply of raw materials so these companies can switch to production off ppe quickly the next time we need to. The same with food. There are plenty of lessons to learn for the future and nor just by the government
yellow belly
Member
- Location
- south west lincolnshire
The raw materials for most flour types was in store in the uk and drawn by the milling industry in the first week
most of the supply issues are with logistics and the
In 1968 during Hong Kong flue they had problems running public transport and delivering milk due to staff shortages
self reliance is about having the ingenuity to find a way round a problem ‘can do ’ rather than that’s impossible someone else must sort it
most of the supply issues are with logistics and the
In 1968 during Hong Kong flue they had problems running public transport and delivering milk due to staff shortages
self reliance is about having the ingenuity to find a way round a problem ‘can do ’ rather than that’s impossible someone else must sort it
ollie989898
Member
This is the problem, most politicians and a lot of civil servants can't run their regular day job for toffee. Throw in a genuine crisis and is it any wonder they can't tell their elbow from their arris?
- Location
- Ceredigion
They wont have any money to chuck at farming that's for sure
- Tags
- defra drought harvesting resilient