Brassica growers have warned of a potential shortage of broccoli and cauliflower due to the recent unpredictable weather.
Wrangle Growers, based in south Lincolnshire, controls over 2,000 acres of land and manager Richard Leggate fears there could be nationwide shortages. “There is a crisis on shelves at the moment in terms of broccoli as there is not a regular supply,” he said.
“We have been importing small amounts of broccoli from Spain, but because they are at the end of their season it isn’t really an option any more. The weather has really hurt UK-based broccoli crops.”
The Brassica Growers Association, which represents around 85 per cent of UK-based brassica producers, stressed the unpredictable weather conditions had stemmed the development of broccoli and cauliflower crops.
BGA chairman Matthew Rawson said all the key growing areas of Lincolnshire, Scotland, Cornwall and Kent have continually been hit with cold and wet weather over the last three months, resulting in a nationwide supply issue.
However, Rawson also praised retailers for working well with the major packagers to address the ongoing situation.
“A few retailers have worked well with packagers in supporting the rising costs where we have been forced to import more broccoli and cauliflower to cope with shortages,” he said.
“While it is worth acknowledging cabbage plants have handled the weather better than the cauliflower and broccoli family, the next six to eight weeks of production will be very difficult.”
Leggate added: “The unpredictable weather has caused massive gaps in our production cycle and we’ve also been forced to import cauliflower over from Germany. The next 10 days are crucial but we do believe the volume of cauliflower should pick up if the weather holds.”
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