Britain’s scorching summer knocked over £800 million off the country’s total farm income according to latest government stats.
In an updated report, the government stated total income from farming is expected to be £4,850 million, a decrease of £861 million (-15 per cent).
Agriculture is also expected to contribute £9,684 million to the national economy, a decrease of £601 million (- 6 per cent).
The government’s estimates said that this year’s trying conditions hit both horticulture and livestock, with total fruit and veg output falling by 1 per cent.
“Crop output value is estimated to have fallen by 1 per cent to £9,162 million. The hot, dry summer contributed to lower yields of key crops. Price increases failed to offset this fall in production,” their estimate states.
The government’s early forecasts for production and outputs are largely based on survey results and administrative information available up to early October applying the relative change over 12 months to these aggregated data.
The total income is calculated as the total profit from all UK farming businesses on a calendar year basis.
