Supermarket shelves left empty as UK chicken shortage reaches 'breaking point'
Supermarket shelves are being stripped of the much-loved British roast chicken over supply shortages.
It comes as the poultry industry says the situation is at 'breaking point' as producers struggle to cope with soaring energy bills and packaging prices that have left the system “unsustainable.”
The British Poultry Council has warned the sector is “at breaking point” unless supermarkets increase the prices they are paying for birds.
Fruit and vegetables stocks could also be hit as record temperatures in Spain and the Mediterranean region have made growing conditions difficult with the fallout hitting UK imports.
In Britain, a prolonged cold winter has spelled a late start to the growing season for native arable farmers, meaning double trouble for fruit and veg buyers.
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The perfect storm of bad weather and soaring energy costs mean in the coming months customers could see less available for the weekly shop.
In Britain, a prolonged cold winter has spelled a late start to the growing season for native arable farmers, meaning double trouble for fruit and veg buyers (Getty Images/iStockphoto)Poultry Council chief executive Richard Griffiths, told the Mail Online: “The drive to keep food affordable under exceptional market conditions where the cost of production is not being returned through the marketplace is rendering poultry meat businesses unviable.”
Mr Griffiths said issues like avian flu, as well as ongoing wrangles around Brexit, meant his members were struggling to get prices for their products that reflected the challenges they faced.
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The National Farmers' Union (NFU) said the growing season for British farmers had started later because of a prolonged cold winter.
The organisation also claimed recent food shortages reflected the UK’s reliance on imported fruit and veg.
The National Farmers' Union (NFU) said the growing season for British farmers had started later because of a prolonged cold winter (Bloomberg via Getty Images)Christine McDowell, from the NFU, said a rise in production costs has added to the problem.
She said: “British growers continue to face significant cost increases, such as energy and labour, and many simply can't afford to keep producing food with the current returns.”
The Spanish government has requested emergency funds from the European Union to support farmers and ranchers amid extreme drought conditions in the country's agricultural heartlands.
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