UK Farmers Miss Out on 9% Burger Price Rise as Fuel and Fertiliser Costs Climb
Updated
Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jul 30
UK Farmers Miss Out on 9% Burger Price Rise as Fuel and Fertiliser Costs Climb
1 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jul 30
Summary
UK farmers and food producers say higher burger, bun and salad prices are not translating into bigger profits, with beef up 9%, bread rolls up 2% and salad up 8% for shoppers.
Input costs are absorbing the gains: producers cited higher fuel, fertiliser, wages, rent, National Insurance, flour and haulage, forcing price increases simply to avoid losses.
Heather Oldfield, who keeps 200 cattle in Lincolnshire, said the farm cannot support two full-time wages even as retail beef prices rise; API data showed farmers received 8% less for beef in April than a year earlier.
Elsewhere in the chain, York baker Phil Clayton said 10p-20p price rises help cover a 30-person operation, while a North Yorkshire mill buying 400 tonnes of wheat a year said haulage has been a major hit.
Vegetable grower Mathew Brankley said even with growers receiving 12.6% more for produce, food in Britain remains relatively cheap and too many intermediaries take a share before money reaches farms.