Like all other agricultural sectors, vegetable horticulture has seen huge contraction over the past decade or so. Fifteen years ago, there were 360 vegetable growers – now there are only 140. Virtually all of this consolidation was driven by market forces and an increasing cost and compliance base. The traditional market gardener has been made all but extinct by retail practices and indifferent consumers.

Like most other sectors, scale and specialisation has been forced on those who continue in the sector. This has led to ongoing consolidation. Just under 20 years ago, 50 growers produced 54% of the vegetable output. Today, 50 growers produce 84% of the total product.

IFA horticulture chair Paul Brophy said this rationalisation has been primarily driven by the five major supermarkets. He indicated that their marketing methods act to devalue food through frequent below-cost discounting and by portraying an image of “local”, which is intermingled with imports to continuously put pressure on producer prices.

Producers and labour in this country are also entitled to decent living standards within the society where they live and work, Paul stated. The system reaffirms the need for the “fair trade” concept but to have it taken back to apply here in the “so-called” developed world.

Lack of producer cohesion

“The fact that growers acted individually and did not come together to act with a single voice has not helped their cause,” Paul said. “Unlike our continental colleagues, Irish growers did not act to build their own brands, and this played into the hands of the major distributors.”

Many previously grown crops have been lost to commercial producers because the supermarkets want to pay global prices for local supply. Costs are too high to do this, given the many production and quality control procedures needed today.

Efforts to get growers organised into groups have been challenging. Legislation prevents producers of similar products from organising together and discussing prices.

Paul said that one producer group has been established which is made up of non-competing producers – ie members produce different crops – but they benefit from being able to discuss the principles of doing business. If this model can be made to work, it is likely that similar producer organisations will emerge.

Sustainability concerns

Sustainability is a modern buzzword, but a primary requirement of sustainable production is that it is financially sustainable.

There was some realisation at consumer level of the importance of local production during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The question now is will this realisation intensify within consumers, or wane?

Locally produced food brings many advantages, starting with a lower carbon footprint.

The produce is naturally fresher, it is seasonal, it matures naturally, and it generates turnover and incomes in the local economy.

If consumers demand sustainability, then they must do so by their actions rather than their words.

Globally sourced produce lacks all of these benefits and it is “cheap” because it frequently involves less favourable social and environmental practices.

Looking forward

Looking towards the future, there are many challenges which must be addressed. These include below-cost selling, labour availability and reimbursement, and the lack of transparency along the supply chain.

Producers are heavily scrutinised but there is little or no transparency from beyond the farm gate to the consumer, Paul stated.

There are also many opportunities. The drive towards sustainability must favour local production and it must be both economic and environmental sustainability. There is considerable scope to increase consumer awareness and to educate them to the cost of cheap food.

Having growers organised also provides a stronger platform from which to send messages to consumers. While growers already work closely with Bord Bia, there is scope for even stronger branding if sustainability is to be embedded across the full length of the supply chain.

In this era of sustainability, some believe that the supply chain needs more validation and that something like a traffic-light system, like an energy-efficiency rating, should be used to give food a sustainability rating. This would enable the purchaser to make an informed decision based on verifiable data. Initiatives like this are critical if local production is to continue and it is also very important for the ongoing development of our food tourism industry.

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