British food a thing of the past???

N9eav

Having my Bro-in law over for a meal last night brought up an intersting conversation. He is a farmer of some 1000 acres in Cornwall. A mixture of dairy (240 cows) and potato crops as well as other veggies, mainly for the supermarkets.
He is currently getting 17p per litre for milk wholesale. It costs that much to produce it apparently.
All farmers are getting a new subsidy now based on land owned and used, rather than food produced. Raising beef subsidies have vanished, and so you will see most of your meat now comes from Argentina (look on the package you will see).
Anyway The new subsidy means he will get FREE from the government £55,000 for this year and subsequent years.
For doing nothing. There are a few rules like maintaining the land so that it could potentially grow a crop the following year.

He says why should I bother working 18 hours a day, filling in forms, vets bills, new equipment, trying to sell what he produces etc etc.

So if all farmers think this way, where will our food come from?????

This is another EURO things and not liked by our UK govn't. But can you see a reason to bother farming in the UK anymore? He can't and you won't find such a real farmer type in the country such as my bro - in law. Several generations etc.

Breynia

Crazy! I've noticed quite a few wheat fields have been left un-harvested this year. Maybe they are being paid not to produce too. Maybe we should go back to the campaign of the 60's/70's of only buying British!

mah_jong

Well....I live in Scotland and will only buy Scottish meat!! So the choice is always with the consumer.

Unfortuantly I think that the habits of many were changed with BSE CJD etc. Its taken a hard toll on British farmers.

Does you BIL run a farm shop ? I think the interest in these esp those going organic (I believe its a 5 year turn around to get to organic) will get HUGE !

competitionscafe

I noticed last time I was in Tesco that some of the Beef was from Argentina (including some of the Organic Beef) but there was also Scottish beef available (not that I would recommend buying your meat from a supermarket anyway, especially Beef as it's seldom hung [aged] properly or for long enough, if at all).

However, I think that the 'shop local, fresh and in season' message is gradually getting through - growing popularity of organic box schemes and farmers markets. All the meat in my local butcher is Scottish (and they will tell you which farm it comes from). Although their lamb and mutton from the Shetlands is hardly 'local' it is still Scottish and very nice!

Interesting article here:
Is Shopping At Tesco Killing the UK Countryside?

by Jurek Leon

extract:
"“Real farmers held up placards bearing questions that Tesco might prefer its shareholders not to think about. ‘Tesco profits – farmers squeezed.’ ‘Who’s creaming it? Farmer paid 9p a pint. Shopper pays…?’ ‘Who snatched the biggest slice? Farmers get 7p a loaf. Shopper pays…?’ Perhaps the most poignant was the placard that read: ‘Cheap food? 11 farmers go bust every day…1 commits suicide every week.”

When the subject of board members £1 million plus pay packets came up at the AGM “…a Lincolnshire arable farmer in the audience, Peter Lungdren, pointed out that the average farm income had dropped to £11,000 a year and that 30 per cent of farming families were living on family credit. He congratulated Tesco on their impressive profits but said that these were being achieved through environmental degradation and rural degradation caused by supermarkets not paying a fair price to the people who grow the nation’s food.”"

Full article:
http://www.terrifictrading.com/article_Is%20Shopping%20at%20Tesco.htm

N9eav

mah_jong wrote:

Well....I live in Scotland and will only buy Scottish meat!! So the choice is always with the consumer.



Does you BIL run a farm shop ? I think the interest in these esp those going organic (I believe its a 5 year turn around to get to organic) will get HUGE !

Nope, but he supplies produce to a local one. He does not grow a diverse enough crop to bother with a farm shop.

I agree but my point is that a lot of farmers could give up if they are given money just for owning land. It's a fine line these days between working hard and making a small proffit or working hard and making nothing. If they give up, then there will be no British products.

Loadsabob

I think it's going to shift to small consumers (us) buying from small producers. There are a lot of farmers who don't have 1000 acres, whose subsidies will be a lot less. Those with 50 acres or less, for example. I think that some farmers will diversify and sell more directly to consumers. That's the shift that is happening with box schemes, Farmers' markets, farm shops. These things used to be very alternative, but now they are so mainstream. I am hopeful that this shift will come about. We have been thinking bigger and bigger and wider and more for so long now, and that hasn't worked...so I think it will start to flow the other way. It's true, the choise IS with the consumer. If people choose only to buy British Beef, there will BE British beef. It may come with a premium, and people may find they're paying a lot for small farm production of top quality beef. Or the government may wise up to the stupid policies they subscribe to.

N9eav

You may be right. But as much as I would buy local, I cannot afford to pay some of these farmers market prices. Considering that it should be almost producer to consumer, their prices were way out of my wallet. £2.30 for a pork chop. I could get 4 in ASDA for that. I would love to help out the local man, but I feel that it will only be for the rich.

mah_jong

That may be true..... I dont live near Asds..or tesco., who seem to have the hold on the market.

I am looking to to buying meat by post/carrier! I dont eat a huge amount of meat so prefer better quality when I do buy it. (remember i am single and not feeding the 5 thousand as I did years ago!!!!). This way sounds good, but the proof will be in the eating.

I now buy some eggs locally too, again expensive but yummy and HUGE and vey orangy yolks and oh, some have double yolks...... if everyone did a wee abit then I think things would turn in favour of the local farmers.

I think we have been trained buy from supermarkets....go to this shop and buy everything under one roof ...( and to """" with the competitors!!).

mah


Ps I am not rich.

tr3mor

My girlfriend's family own a farm - the most shocking thing i find is that it's cheaper for them to buy meat from waitrose rather than get their own beef or lambs slaughtered at an abbatoir because of all the red tape and tagging etc.

Loadsabob

N9eav wrote:

I would love to help out the local man, but I feel that it will only be for the rich.

Or the vegetarians! I don't have to buy meat, which probably would bump up the cost of my shopping bill. Also, I'm only buying for me, which helps. However, I'm going to start buying sea vegetables, which don't come cheap...or local, probably! Looking at meat at our local farmer's market, though (for my boyfriend, who eats it), it was cheaper than the supermarket organic meat.

edit: I'm not rich, either...not using any stretch of the term!...!

TigerAngel11

It's up to the consumer to ensure that they buy British products if they want the British farming economy to prosper. It depends whether it's more important to you to save a few extra pounds or support your local farmers. It's not just the farms that suffer either: the manufacturing/industrial community has been suffering for a long time too.