Cheap food era is over, warn farmers

The era of cheap food will soon be over, farmers warned British consumers today.

Prices must increase to reflect a “substantial” rise in commodities such as cereals and oilseed, according to the National Farmers Union.

The NFU said the drive for cheap food has caused many farming and rural problems over the past decade.

Peter Kendall, president of the NFU, said farmgate prices in the livestock and dairy sectors would rise to reflect increased production costs.

“The era of cheap food at any cost is over and I, for one, will not be missing it.

“We are witnessing a sea-change in world commodity markets and this should be reflected at the farm level, otherwise it will be all too clear that the supply chain is not working properly.”

Mr Kendall said farmgate prices had lagged behind rising production costs and the cost of living “for too long”.

He warned that dairy and cereal farmgate prices were now lower than they were a decade ago.

“Rising farmgate prices are long overdue and they cannot come at a better time for cereal growers and dairy and livestock farmers, for whom this dismal summer might otherwise have been the last straw,” he said.

“Food has never been cheaper, with consumers spending less than 9% of their income on food, compared with more than 22% just 40 years ago.

“Food price increases are both affordable and needed.”