Farmers facing price rises fear volatile times

There are fears a shortage of fertiliser produced in Russia will affect future crops in the UK

There are fears food supply could be affected as a result of the war in Ukraine, according to members of the farming industry.

Farmer Guy Smith, from Essex, said the price of fertiliser had trebled and it felt like "very volatile times".

The National Farmers' Union (NFU) warned farmers were facing rapidly increasing prices.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said it was trying to find "long-term solutions".

Guy Smith said he would need to use less fertiliser to deal with a shortage from Russia

Mr Smith, who farms in St Osyth, said nitrogen fertiliser was becoming more expensive and so was using 25% less than normal on his wheat crops.

He said he feared prices would increase as a result.

"Food will become more expensive. And what is really worrying is that for parts of the world where people aren't as well off as they are in this country, food could become short and that's very worrying," he said.

"I've been farming now for 30 to 40 years and I have never seen fertiliser treble and never seen the wheat price double.

"These are very volatile times."

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Russia and Ukraine, once dubbed "the breadbasket of Europe", export about a quarter of the world's wheat and half of its sunflower products, such as seeds and oil.

Grain trader Andrew Dewing said he feared the lack of fertiliser could cause problems for future crops

Andrew Dewing who manages and owns a grain trade business in Aylsham, Norfolk, said the increased price was a short-term benefit for suppliers in the UK, but the lack of fertiliser could cause problems for future crops.

"It's important to say that a farmer might benefit price-wise this year but they're not going to benefit in future years if this is ongoing.

"[They] may not be able to produce crops at the same level or might not get the supply of fertiliser anyway," he said.

'Extreme volatility'

An NFU spokesman said: "The impact of the conflict has seen prices rise even further for everyone.

"For farmers, prices of fertiliser and animal feed in particular is increasing rapidly.

"To maintain confidence and stability in the supply chain, we have highlighted some short and long-term asks of government that can help navigate the extreme volatility we are seeing today and will grow in the coming months."

The NFU is calling on the Government to prioritise food security and sustainable food production, preserve and protect gas supplies for food production and processing and create a market monitoring group to identify and resolve potential problems.

Speaking in the House of Commons on Thursday, the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary, George Eustice, said the Government was taking a number of steps including setting up a group to work with industry to "identify better, long-term solutions that rely less on the price of gas".

He also said they had been working with the UK's producer of fertiliser to maintain production.