Another vegetable grower has gone out of business. This time it’s one of the largest carrot producers in the country, supplying nearly 12% of the island’s carrots.
Hughes Farming and Agriculture, a major operator employing 45 staff, has closed its doors overnight and declared bankruptcy. Watch this week’s Instagram video on the topic here.
How can this be? And where will we be if we continue down this road?
In the early 1990s there were over 600 commercial vegetable growers in Ireland.
As of last week there were 74. Now there are 73.
The sector is in serious trouble. Why?
There are many factors, but the biggest is simple: the price paid for produce by supermarkets versus the cost of producing it.
Since 2010, inflation and wage costs have increased dramatically. Vegetable production is hugely labour-intensive. The reality is that the price paid for vegetables has actually decreased since 2003, while the cost of producing them has soared.
In 2003 the minimum wage in Ireland was €6.35. Since then it has increased by 123%.
Yet the price paid to farmers for their produce has fallen. That is not sustainable Supermarket pricing and buying practices have played a major role in bringing us to this point.
So we need to ask ourselves an honest question:
Are we comfortable seeing all our vegetable growers disappear?
Ireland today imports over 84% of its fruit and vegetables. Are we happy for that to reach 100%? Because if we continue as we are, that is exactly where we are heading.
And it’s not just pricing.
Vegetable growers now face the increasing risks of climate instability. This year we have not ploughed a single field yet because of relentless and unprecedented rain.
Why would anyone choose to take on that risk, for returns that often don’t even cover the cost of production? I see it on our own farm every year.
Growing vegetables can be a loss-making enterprise. The only reason we can continue is because we have our own retail arm, which gives us some control over where the small profits in the business are allocated.
Without that, we simply could not keep the farm going.
But it should not be like this.
Supermarket price wars, loss-leading vegetables, deregulation, and consumer buying habits all play their part.
The work is hard, physical and relentless. The thanks are few. Yet what we do is fundamental. It is about food security.
There will be very little we can do with iPhones if we run out of food.
And perhaps the saddest thing is that we have reduced food to something it was never meant to be: a plastic-wrapped commodity, sold as cheaply as possible, offered up on the altar of unrestrained capitalism.
Food should be a celebration of who we are.
So what happens now?
What happens to the 45 employees who worked there?
What happens to the supply of local food?
What happens to the skill and expertise built up over decades?
We can still take action.
We can choose to support Irish growers — not just when their produce is on discount, but when it reflects the true cost of producing real food.
We can support local farmers, farm shops, markets, and box schemes.
We can visit farms, go on farm walks, and learn what is involved in producing food.
There is a lot we can do.
I just hope it is not too late.
This year we begin our 20th growing season, and I find myself wondering what it will bring.
As always, thank you for your support.
It truly makes all the difference.
Kenneth