Food is too cheap in Britain !

[Steevo]

The price of something is generally a pee poor indicator of how profitable it is.

Value of wheat in loaf of £2 loaf of bread
Value of wheat in £1.50 pack of biscuits
Value of barley in £12 pack of 10 Kronenbourg cans etc.

 

[Lowland1]

Think @Lowland1 made a comment on another thread.

How about a graphic showing farm gate prices of our produce vs selling price in supermarkets?

could show where profit is taken vs cost to produce.

That was more about trying to educate the public rather than building barricades and blocking roads which I reckon would be counterproductive. Raising the price of food isn't going to be popular so farmers have to pressurise the retailers to share out the money fairly. If a kilo of potatoes retails for a pound but leaves the farm at 30 p then they should be forced to explain their mark up likewise things like meat and milk how can they justify doubling or tripling the farm gate prices. Farming organisations need to play dirty. With traceability it's easy to say that a piece of beef,pork or chicken came from a certain farm , where it was processed and where it was sold and the costs in the value chain. When we get Supermarket visitors we are always told we must be more efficient. Now farmers need to put it back to them. Blackmail them.

 

[Farmer Roy]

I paid $21 for a leg of lamb ( no subsidies or “payments” involved either ) at one of our major supermarkets the other day, that fed a family of 3, 2 main evening meals plus some leftovers

in comparison, one of the bigger McDonalds burgers costs about $10

a takeaway coffee is around $5

anyone who says food is too dear can go & Fuch themselves

 

[koshari]

food and eating out is dearer in the UK than Au for example we pay in dollars about what you guys pay in pounds for say a pizza or a piece of fish from the fish n chip shop. , however drinking is the opposite. a pint in Melbourne for example has just hit 16.50 which is about 8 pounds, iirc not to many places are charging over 5 quid a pint in the UK??

 

[koshari]

beef prices in Au supermarket this week, in Au dollars,

coles meat adds as per 29/01/2024​

​

Lean Mince | 500g$9.00$18.00 per 1kg​

Coles Beef Stir Fry Strips | 500g$12.00$24.00 per 1kg​

Beef Quick Cook Scotch F... 170gSPECIAL$8.00$47.06 per 1kg​

Silverside | approx 1.4kg$15.40$11.00 per 1kg​

Coles Beef Diced | 500g$11.00$22.00 per 1kg​

Beef Mince Big Value Pack | approx 1.9kg$19.95$10.50 per 1kg​

Scotch Steak Fillet 2 Pack | 480g$20.00$41.67 per 1kg​

Coles Beef Sizzle Steak | 400gDOWN DOWN$11.00$27.50 per 1kg​

Beef Quick Cook Porterh... 180gSPECIAL$8.00$44.45 per 1kg​

Beef Porterhouse Steak 2... 450gDOWN DOWN$14.00$31.11 per 1kg​

Drovers Choice Beef Rump Steak | 230g$6.00$26.09 per 1kg​

eef Sandwich Steak | 400gDOWN DOWN$10.00$25.00 per 1kg​

Beef Rump Steak | 500g$15.00$30.00 per 1kg​

Brisket Slow Cook |... approx 1.4kg$21.00$15.00 per 1kg​

Beef Blade Roast | approx 1.42kg$21.30$15.00 per 1kg​

Beef Blade Steak | approx... approx 1.2kg$21.60$18.00 per 1kg​

Beef Roast Topsi... approx 1.3kg$23.40$18.00 per 1kg​

Grassfed Beef Stir Fry | 500g$13.00$26.00 per 1kg​

Beef Oyster Blade Steak | 500g$13.00$26.00 per 1kg​

Silverside | approx 100g SPECIAL $2.27Save $0.43$22.70 per 1kg​

Beef Eye Fillet Steak Small Pack | 300g$16.00$53.34​

Beef Eye Fillet Steak | 450g$23.50$52.22​

Beef Rump Medallions | 300g$12.00$40.00​

Burger | 500gSPECIAL$8.50$17.00​

Beef T Bone Steak | approx 1kg$30.00$30.00 per 1kg​

Gravy Beef | 800g$14.00$17.50 per 1kg​

Beef Ribs | approx 800g$12.00$15.00 per 1kg​

Beef Tender Blade Roast | approx 1kg$17.00$17.00 per 1kg​

Beef Eye Fillet Roast | approx... approx 450g$23.40$52.00 per 1kg​

Chuck Casserole Steak | 850g$15.00$17.65 per 1kg​

Beef Short Rib Fingers | approx... approx 930g$21.86$23.50 per 1kg​

 

[Farmer Roy]

food and eating out is dearer in the UK than Au for example we pay in dollars about what you guys pay in pounds for say a pizza or a piece of fish from the fish n chip shop. , however drinking is the opposite. a pint in Melbourne for example has just hit 16.50 which is about 8 pounds, iirc not to many places are charging over 5 quid a pint in the UK??

that was my personal experience of living in the UK from 1988 - 1991


but, I have ALWAYS been told that Aus food is more expensive than UK & that is due to your subsidies keeping prices down at retail, which is why they need to be retained ???

 

[soapsud]

Farming organisations need to play dirty. With traceability it's easy to say that a piece of beef,pork or chicken came from a certain farm , where it was processed and where it was sold and the costs in the value chain. When we get Supermarket visitors we are always told we must be more efficient. Now farmers need to put it back to them. Blackmail them.

That's partly a negotiating ploy isn't it to establish rapport and provide scope for improvements? It puts the onus on you as to why they pay you so little. It's what partnership means: make you make up the shortfall on your side of the contract by working harder for them.

 

[Farmer Roy]

food and eating out is dearer in the UK than Au for example we pay in dollars about what you guys pay in pounds for say a pizza or a piece of fish from the fish n chip shop. , however drinking is the opposite. a pint in Melbourne for example has just hit 16.50 which is about 8 pounds, iirc not to many places are charging over 5 quid a pint in the UK??

over $10 for a schooner in a country pub . . . ( city pubs, especially flash ones, always seem dearer )
we have a lot of tax on alcohol, plus labour costs / wages in pubs & restaurants may be dearer ?

 

[Castle Farm]

Why are you bothered about the cost of food. Just plead poverty and get it for free from a food bank. No need to work any more. Have as many pups as your body can take and you can get them fed and clothed by the stupid tax payers.
Happy days.

 

[koshari]

over $10 for a schooner in a country pub . . . ( city pubs, especially flash ones, always seem dearer )
we have a lot of tax on alcohol, plus labour costs / wages in pubs & restaurants may be dearer ?

that twice a year excise adjustment algorithm is obviously flawed because alcohol prices have risen out of step with inflation which was touted to be the original intention, looks like the pollies are not being honest with us again, and both parties have had ample opportunity to correct it.

 

[bluebell]

People in the west, are lazy, me included, the easier you make it, the more you sell, ready meals? ready to eat foods? Full of what, made from what? from where? who cares, its easy to eat and tastes good?

 

[bluebell]

I remember 30 odd years ago, pre euro, spain, having a villia, eating and drinking out, seemed so much more reasonable, than back in the UK, plus the food was "freash" cooked from scratch, at that time the pound v the pesato was very good?

 

[Pennine Ploughing]

If food went up by 50%, the farmer would only receive 5% of it,
So no point in moaning about it

 

[nxy]

I have posted this before and its getting quite old but its still interesting

 

[bluebell]

Pennine ploughing your right? thats what annoys me when on the news over the years, say like this winter, potatoes, fields wet, cant be lifted, price shot up? Hot summer a few years back, wheat harvest not as good, bread will cost alot more? How much of the cost of a loaf of bread is wheat actual costing? a small fraction, i bet the wrapping costs more? but again the farmer gets blamed?

 

[DaveGrohl]

I have posted this before and its getting quite old but its still interesting

View attachment 1161299

It would be interesting to see how that would look today rather than 2017 when interest rates were almost zero. That housing bar looks undercooked frankly.

 

[Canada Farmer]

Take subsides out of the equation in the UK, that is what is happening right now, already cut to 50% of what we received in 2020 and phased out in the next 3. Even if the UK ceased production entirely it would do pretty much nothing to the global price of most globally traded commodities. The value of the ingredients is the smallest component of many commonly bought foods, loaf of bread retailing at £1.70 has about 20-25p of ingredients. Packet of crisps, retailing at 75p probably not even 2p worth of potatoes... Removal of subs will have zero impact of food prices it will only accelerate the consolidation of food producers.

Well you have 2 options, one being what good old Pierre Trudeau did back in the 70's with supply management or the 80's across the Pacific and equator with the removal of all trade barriers and tarriffs and adapt to regional and gloabal pricing and procurement.
Either way your 40 -50 years behind the times....
As a producer its time to grow some balls and to cooperate to increase the production payments while cutting the margins within the wholesale/retail sectors, with the purchaser/consumer paying a cost within some reality.
Running the UK agricultural industry like the Justin Trudeau runs the Canadian Liberal party/government isn't a viable option.

 

[andybk]

Have to say just reading James Rebanks new book that the new schemes look to be waking up to addressing rural issues regard environment (a good start) , but in all honesty until HMG put some control on supermarket power and certainly their sourcing of product and stopping these stupid price wars , nothing will change , the big industrial farmers will carry on keeping the price nailed down the same (just who funded the 15p veg at christmas ?), leaving the small to mid sized to carry the enviro burden and running at a loss ,
So a new gov come in ,cuts rpa funding who going to be left ?

 

[Lowland1]

That's partly a negotiating ploy isn't it to establish rapport and provide scope for improvements? It puts the onus on you as to why they pay you so little. It's what partnership means: make you make up the shortfall on your side of the contract by working harder for them.

I know that. Basically don’t ask for more money because you aren’t good enough at your job. When tendering for contracts our agents often have to give a breakdown of all costs so the Supermarkets can pull them apart. Surely someone like the NFU could go to the retailer and say ‘How do you justify that markup?’

 

[BrianV]