East Anglian farmers are calling for political action to save the Great British potato amid fears over the impact of extreme weather and high production costs, writes Chris Hill in a news story published by the Eastern Daily Press and republished by Yahoo News.
The future of the homegrown household staple has come under increasing pressure, with growers battling drought and floods in the last three years, and months of heavy rain this season.
Farmers have reported significant delays in the lifting of the 2023 crop and a further delay in planting the 2024 crop. At the same time, costs of key inputs like fertiliser and energy for storing potatoes have remained “unsustainably high”, with the cost of production in the sector increasing by 28pc during the past two years, says the National Farmers’ Union (NFU).
Farmer Andrew Blenkiron, managing director of Elveden Farms, on the Norfolk/ Suffolk border near Thetford, said: “The future of British potatoes is at risk. East Anglia is a big potato growing region and this is a very worrying situation. Potato growers here make a major contribution to the local economy so the success of this sector is vital to the whole region.”
Source: Eastern Daily Press via Yahoo News. Read the full story here
Image: Credit NFU
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