Supermarkets have been accused of pocketing higher soft fruit profits as producers struggle with high labour and production costs.
Trade body British Berry Growers (BBG) said retailers paid the same price for strawberries during 2022, despite the average selling price per kilo having risen by 11%, the Financial Times reported.
BBG chair, Nick Marston told the newspaper that increasing production costs and “flat returns from supermarkets,” is “seriously threatening” the viability of the British berry industry.
“Growers are not making money. If they can’t make a profit, then slowly they will stop doing it.”
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He added that 50% of the cost of a punnet goes to labour costs, as a result of rigid new immigration rules on low-skilled workers since the UK exited the European Union.
As a result of these struggles, growers have planted 8% less crops for the 2024 season, which will see around nine million fewer punnets on supermarket shelves next year.
Grocery price inflation fell for the fourth consecutive month in July, down by 1.6% to 14.9%, which Kantar head of retail and consumer insight, Fraser McKevitt, said “will be good news for many households.”
However, supermarkets were accused of ‘profiteering‘ in June, with bosses questioned by the business committee over the causes of food and fuel price rises.
Speaking with MPs on 27 June, Tesco commercial director Gordon Gafa said the retailer is the “most competitive we have ever been,” while Sainsbury’s food commercial director Rhian Bartlett insisted the supermarket is not passing on the full impact of rising costs to consumers.
