Vegetable shortage: West Sussex farm director gives reasons and says when shelves will return to normal

Across the country shoppers have faced rows of empty shelves in the fresh produce aisles. Readers of this newspaper face shortages in Waitrose, Tesco, Aldi and ASDA.

Michelle Dawn White said she managed to forage just five cabbage leaves from crates in Morrison’s this week, and Sally Harris was left with half a dessert when Aldi staff confined her crumble recipe to just three apples.

One local producer has given the reasons behind the shortage and has said when shelves will be bursting with greens again.

Barfoots Farm, in Pagham Road, between Chichester and Bognor Regis, grows a range of vegetables in an outdoor environment.

Julian Marks, group managing director the company said there have a range of economic and environmental factors behind the shortage which have created the ‘perfect storm’.

He said: “I think there’s a number of factors. The first is that in protective cropping sectors decisions were made to not produce crops last Autumn because of high energy prices and that unwillingness of certain retailers to agree to the prices required.

“Glass house operators didn’t fill their glass houses up so the reliance was on Southern Europe and north Africa. It has been cole and wet there and there has been a level of disease including a tomato virus that has affected tomato crops.

“It’s created the perfect storm.”

Asked if these change are driving more trade towards Barfoots, Julian said there hasn’t been a huge amount but added: “We are seeing relatively high demand for produce like tender stem broccoli.”

Help is on the way, however, thanks to the imminence of Spring and incoming warmer weather.

Julian said: “As days lighten and nights warm up this facilities will be filled up again. It’s a combination of weather and changing seasons and whether consumers are prepared to pay the cost of crops.”