As I battled my way through the blizzard-like conditions in west London this morning to get into the office - yes, such is my unerring commitment to send FPJ to press each and every week - I couldn’t help but wonder how badly this severe cold snap must be affecting those of you whose livelihoods are inextricably dependent on the weather.

The national media is fanning the flames of panic by suggesting that we might find ourselves having to dust down the out-of-date tins of Spam and sweetcorn from the back of the cupboard, as food shortages could become a problem.

While there have inevitably been delays to deliveries, growers in the UK and elsewhere in Europe are going above and beyond to make sure that supplies still manage to reach supermarket shelves during this difficult time. As Sarah Pettitt from the National Farmers’ Union pointed out this week, it seems unlikely that producers will receive due credit for battling through such bad conditions. However, the news that Tesco is widening its specs to help producers out must be welcome, given the massive hike in harvesting costs created by the freeze.

This country is, in general, woefully ill prepared for such extreme weather, but growers are to be praised for their commitment to harvesting at a time when schools, public transport systems and even the postal service are all finding it hard to keep going.

Oh, and apologies if your FPJ gets delayed this week. I am blaming the wrong kind of snow...