Oh yes, we have no tomatoes !

In black and white days the answer would've been: because it's winter!!.
Same for soft fruit salad etc all of which tastes of........nothing!!
I'd rather wait and take advantage of the fab seasonal stuff in abundance on our market...

Border force strikes?

Grandmabatty

Brexit. Tomatoes at this time of year come from mainly Spain, I think.

So where do other supermarkets get theirs from? Can’t be Brexit if it’s not affecting all of them.

We have a local market in on Monday here in Fareham and there is a stall absolutely bursting with fruit and veg from all over the world . Eggs no problem as we have our open chickens ducks and geese. Cannot wait to start sowing seeds as we have an allotment and grow lots of tomatoes and various other veg and fruit . However yes shelves in most of the stores seem to be lacking in lots of produce at the moment and not just fresh food

I'm in Belgium, and we have no shortages. Of course, due to the energy crisis a lot of our regular shopping has become more expensive (cost of heating greenhouses,ánd cost of transportation). Several varieties of omatoes are readily available but ór they are coming from Spain and rather expensive, or they are grown in hydroculture and have no taste at all. I'll happily wait for the delicious garden tomatoes!

Grandmabatty how on earth can you blame Brexit for a shortage of tomatoes which is due to bad weather in tomato growing countries? ???

Sorry, but that really irritates me - its almost as though you automatically blame anything for which you don't really know the reason, on Brexit!

Paperbackwriter

Joseanne

My order for Tesco delivery tomorrow had no tomatoes, peppers or cucumber.

My DD brought me a cauliflower back from Brittany yesterday. 4 euros 85!!

Good grief, that's a huge price! Where on earth are you? I was in Cornwall last week and cauliflowers are being harvested there right now and are quite cheap!

Sorry, maybe I wasn't clear in my explanation. The cauliflower at 4 euros 85 was bought from a French bio market (organic produce) in Dinard, Brittany. (I didn't need it, it's a family joke ... long story!)
But I've just checked bog standard Carrefour supermarket online and they are even 3 euros 99 there, when normally they are around one euro. I don't know the reason.
Anyway, I found peppers and tomatoes in Lidl today so I can get on with making tonight's pasta sauce.

Part of the higher cost is due to other factors than B. But the low value of Sterling is also making things much worse. And as the EU is also experiencing a shortage, you can't blame them to agree to seel to its own members, without exchange rate issues, extra transport and red tape, huge waits for the Channel Tunnel and Ferries, etc. If you are part of a Union, you prioritise your own members, especially if on top of that, it is easier and cheaper. Simple and fair enough.

TiggyW

If eggs are scarce for pancakes, there are always batter mixes available. I’m going to Aldi soon for a Big Shop - I’ll report back later! 😂

I bought a batter mix just in case but them remembered I'd used it a few years ago and wasn't keen.

We have eggs - had a Waitrose delivery last Friday and wasn't sure if they would be included but yes, we got a dozen.

sharonarnott

Watched a TikTok news report on it this morning. They was talking to a supplier. Apparently it is same as the Egg situation, a stand off between the suppliers and the supermarkets who are refusing to pay the increased packaging and transport costs. Nothing to do with brexit according to the investigator, just easier for people to blame that rather than go in search of actual facts.

Yes, and what is responsible for a large part of increased cost of transport, red tape, drivers, etc, etc?

Of course 'nothing to do with B !?!

Sandynan

It’s winter! Why are we buying tomatoes at this time of year! They don’t taste of anything, grown artificially in forced conditions using lots of water and slave labour in Spain and Morocco. . Why not eat winter veg at this time of year.. a crisp winter salad with pear, walnuts and cheese, We would rather wait in anticipation until the right season comes along for different fruit and veg and enjoy them at their best and most flavoursome.

My winter salads are more of a coleslaw type thing, but with very little mayonnaise. White cabbage, onion, carrot, apple, celery, all of which keep very well. During the winter the celery is usually from Spain - everything else is U.K. grown. I have to go to M&S or Sainsbury’s for non imported apples, though.

I haven’t noticed a lack of anything so far, my Co-op has eggs and peppers and tomatoes.

sharonarnott

Watched a TikTok news report on it this morning. They was talking to a supplier. Apparently it is same as the Egg situation, a stand off between the suppliers and the supermarkets who are refusing to pay the increased packaging and transport costs. Nothing to do with brexit according to the investigator, just easier for people to blame that rather than go in search of actual facts.

😂Yeah, have noticed that, Brexit being blamed for a lack of eggs to the weather.

If eggs are scarce for pancakes, there are always batter mixes available. I’m going to Aldi soon for a Big Shop - I’ll report back later! 😂

Joseanne

My order for Tesco delivery tomorrow had no tomatoes, peppers or cucumber.

My DD brought me a cauliflower back from Brittany yesterday. 4 euros 85!!

Good grief, that's a huge price! Where on earth are you? I was in Cornwall last week and cauliflowers are being harvested there right now and are quite cheap!

Tomatoes from Poland in m & s.

Sandynan

It’s winter! Why are we buying tomatoes at this time of year! They don’t taste of anything, grown artificially in forced conditions using lots of water and slave labour in Spain and Morocco. . Why not eat winter veg at this time of year.. a crisp winter salad with pear, walnuts and cheese, We would rather wait in anticipation until the right season comes along for different fruit and veg and enjoy them at their best and most flavoursome.

Pears only last a maximum of three months in storage though Sandynan so your alternative doesn’t work either. I suppose we could eat lots of coleslaw instead. We’ve become so used to relying on imported fruit and veg eatables that it would be very difficult if nothing was available, particularly at this time of year.

Not sure if Jeremy Vine has been mentioned but one of his guests witnessed a slanging match about lack of tomatoes in a supermarket

I eat quite a lot of eggs and I've noticed for months that they've been in short supply. I buy most of my groceries online and I reckon that most weeks, my first choice has been out of stock. When I've occasionally physically gone to a supermarket, the egg shelf has often been empty, apart from a couple of boxes of "premium" eggs. Even the market, where a trader sells his own eggs, have run out early.

Personally, I'm not that bothered about tomatoes because I don't really like uncooked tomatoes, but I've also noticed that the fresh salad shelves are empty.

PS. From a health pov, cooking tomatoes boosts the antioxidant power of lycopene in tomatoes, although they lose some of their vitamin C. I eat so much uncooked fruit and veg that I'm not too bothered about my vitamin C intake.

PPS. I find it all annoying rather than a big tragedy.

Our problem is bread, we normally buy an uncut granary, a sliced wholemeal (a bakery one ) and a white sliced for DS.

Most weeks we only get one plus the white. Last summer they substituted the unsliced one for acsliced. D H wanted to know why they didn't wait to slice them as people who don't want sliced ( you can't cut a doorstep off a sliced loaf)

Watched a TikTok news report on it this morning. They was talking to a supplier. Apparently it is same as the Egg situation, a stand off between the suppliers and the supermarkets who are refusing to pay the increased packaging and transport costs. Nothing to do with brexit according to the investigator, just easier for people to blame that rather than go in search of actual facts.

I haven’t noticed a tomato shortage, though don’t eat many at this time of year as they’re such awful quality. I was astounded this weekend when my DD in Yorkshire said she hadn’t seen any eggs for weeks and weeks! Choice might have been a bit limited here in Scotland, such as not all sizes being available, but there’s never been no eggs at all.

Brexit is mainly to blame… write to your MP to complain!!!

Shopping for my dad this am and in his village could only find one tiny bottle of Gaviscon Tried Home Bargains, Body Care and Aldi. Normally get the generic from HB but the shelves empty.

my Tesco had tomatoes but have had a limited as in a few dozen eggs for the last few weeks and also has empty places on shelves