18/03/21 The ongoing problem of fat pigs, storing cabbages, US trade deal and UK agriculture

Farming Today

• Episode: 18/03/21 The ongoing problem of fat pigs, storing cabbages, US trade deal and UK agriculture
• Website: Farming Today
• Feed URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qj8q/episodes/downloads.rss
• Duration: 00:13:37
• Published: 2021-03-18 07:00

Pig farmers want more help from processors and retailers to cope with the fallout from delays in slaughterhouses because of Covid restrictions, and indeed Covid outbreaks amongst workers, and the impact of Brexit. This week we're focusing on the hungry gap, that time of year when UK grown fruit and veg is harder to come by. One of the obvious ways to plug the gap is by storing produce harvested earlier in the year, but its not as simple as it sounds. For instance, every year thousands of cabbages harvested in the UK go to waste after falling victim to diseases while in storage. The UK is unlikely to be flooded with cheaper American produce once a trade deal is agreed, at least in the short term, but any deal will have significant implications for agri-food businesses. That’s the conclusion of a report out today from the levy body the AHDB into the probable impact of a transatlantic deal on British farmers. Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Beatrice Fenton.