Food Inflation Reaches 4.2%.

The cost of fertilisers has rocketed.
Minimum wage has risen. Employer NI contributions have risen.
Water for crops costs money. When water reserves are low, water has to be trucked around the country. More expense.
Climate change is hitting the whole of Europe. Floods, droughts, heat, have reduced cropping. But the amount and cost of machines, labour, fuel, stock feed, fertilisers , irrigation hasn't reduced . So it costs farmers MORE to produce LESS.

Fewer apples, less wheat, means buyers compete to buy them; so supermarkets are then paying more for basic products. Not surprising we pay higher costs.

You aint seen nothing yet. Farming in UK is in big trouble; producers of meat, eggs, dairy are struggling to survive. If they go under and we have to import more meat, eggs, dairy, grain, we've lost UK control of production , health and welfare standards entirely. Plus, we'll be paying the cost of freighting those basics from abroad.

Farmers world wide are facing the same problems, costs of fertiliser, loss of grazing, climate change.

GrannyGravy13

Allira The Farmers Dog (Jeremy Clarkson’s) pub only uses locally grown and reared food produce.

I have looked at his menu and it seems reasonable to me.

All restaurants round here including London have put up their prices to factor in increased Labour, energy and produce costs.

Allira The Farmers Dog (Jeremy Clarkson’s) pub only uses locally grown and reared food produce.

Yes, I know, GrannyGravy
I made a mistake in my post which meant the wrong quote got repeated!

Seldom buy lamb but prices for a half leg are over £12

The family likes lamb and a leg of home-produced lamb in Tesco is about £25. More in Waitrose.
One very locally produced which DS bought at Christmas was £42.

If it's promotion in Tesco it can be half-price but that probably doesn't cover costs so I hope Tesco covers that, not the farmer!

Allira The Farmers Dog (Jeremy Clarkson’s) pub only uses locally grown and reared food produce.

I have looked at his menu and it seems reasonable to me.

All restaurants round here including London have put up their prices to factor in increased Labour, energy and produce costs.

Local butchers prices (approximately)

A free range chicken £15-16

A very small beef joint £12 +

Pork loin on the bone (one bone) £10 +

Seldom buy lamb but prices for a half leg are over £12

I would be interested to know where David49 purchases his meat.

Don’t believe Clarkson he is making money at £30, local pubs offer 2 courses at £20 or less.
Ignore the second time that posted! For some reason it kept repeating itself.

It was meant to be:

Last week Pork cost £8
How was that produced, do you know?
Was it free-range, ethically produced meat?

Don’t believe Clarkson he is making money at £30, local pubs offer 2 courses at £20 or less.

If you can find a pub that offers good local produce at £20 for two courses, please point us all in that direction!
Wetherspoons perhaps?

Don’t believe Clarkson he is making money at £30, local pubs offer 2 courses at £20 or less.

How was that produced, do you know?
Was it free-range, ethically produced meat?
£8 seems incredibly cheap for such a large piece of pork.

It's not just the increase in prices which farmers have had to find for food, fertilisers, employee bills etc, the supermarkets have also had to pay increased staff costs.

I'm not defending supermarkets, btw, as I don't think they always treat farmers fairly and their profits are huge.

I won't believe it until it see it and taste it.

Boz

Of course the biggest cost of a S. roast is the meat. The price of feed has put up the price of meat- veg is also dearer but what sends the bill skyhigh is the fact that N.I. is up and wages also, especially on a Sunday. A perfect storm.
Incidentally, I believe Jeremy Clarkson's Roast dinner is over £30 and he said he was losing money. I can believe this when you factor in all the additional expenses.

Don’t believe Clarkson he is making money at £30, local pubs offer 2 courses at £20 or less.

We have a roast most Sundays Chicken or Pork often sometimes Lamb, Ham or Venison, Beef is strictly special occasion. We both cook I usually do Sunday

Last week Pork cost £8, 3 Veg plus potatoes all fresh plus £6
£14 for 2 of us, cold meat Monday with veg, cold meat with salad Tuesday, curry or sweet and sour with remainder Wednesday.
With a few extras £16 for 2 of us over 4 days, around £2 per day and we eat well. We rarely eat out, mainly because I resent paying for a meal that I could cook better myself

I added up how much it would cost to buy all the ingredients to make ratatouille from a mid-range online supermarket and it came to nearly £12. Admittedly, given the fact some ingredients only come in multi-packs, you would have some left over. It is still a great deal of money for a vegetable dish.

Of course the biggest cost of a S. roast is the meat. The price of feed has put up the price of meat- veg is also dearer but what sends the bill skyhigh is the fact that N.I. is up and wages also, especially on a Sunday. A perfect storm.
Incidentally, I believe Jeremy Clarkson's Roast dinner is over £30 and he said he was losing money. I can believe this when you factor in all the additional expenses.

Boz

The cost to Eateries is putting prices up.
A local Bistro has closed. They had to charge £32.50 for a 2 course Sunday Roast (award winning Sunday Roast menu). OK for a couple but imagine having to pick up a bill for nearly £200 for a family of four with grandparents. Out of reach for a lot of people.
On the other hand, we had a nice meal for two with one dessert and two drinks at Ikea last week which was £18. They were very busy.

Someone’s accounting must be skewed. The most expensive part of a roast dinner is the meat. What is taken up by remaining space on the plate ( the majority) is taken up with veg.

Every time we do a food shop prices have increased……just today I bought my usual brand of tomato puree….. last time I bought it the price was 49p…….it is now 65p!

The cost to Eateries is putting prices up.
A local Bistro has closed. They had to charge £32.50 for a 2 course Sunday Roast (award winning Sunday Roast menu). OK for a couple but imagine having to pick up a bill for nearly £200 for a family of four with grandparents. Out of reach for a lot of people.
On the other hand, we had a nice meal for two with one dessert and two drinks at Ikea last week which was £18. They were very busy.

Sparklefizz

The weather has had a big effect. Farmers are having to buy feed for their animals because the grass has dried up without rain. Crops and harvests will also be low this year for the same reason.

The weather effect will be felt for a long time, I think.

While we may be able to import from other countries we're not the only one that has been affected by drought, so we'd be in competition with other drought affected countries, which is bound to push prices up.

Same over here in Australia. Horrendous prices for everything, even the ‘basics’ Probably worldwide I suppose.

Doodledog I wasn’t government bashing

David49

“Exactly who is raking in the profits? “

That’s easy Tesco declared £3 billion profit last year.

It would be interesting to know just how that 'profit' is spent.

Maybe not. I'm not government bashing, or alluding to failures of other governments though - just saying that it would be a sensible initiative that would potentially help with obesity and protect farmers. It wasn't a political post at all.

It would be good if it were possible for people to just agree with one another from time to time without couching every comment as pro or anti the current government.

Doodledog

I would like to see money from initiatives such as the sugar tax used to subsidise a relatively limited number of food items such as vegetables, fruit, beans and wholegrain rice, so that everyone can buy enough food to feed themselves and their families. I'm not a fan of banning anything, so would keep pizza, chocolate and gin on the shelves, but would make healthier choices more attractive financially as well as good for our diets.

I agree, but cannot see anything like this happening under this Government or any others any time soon.

I would like to see money from initiatives such as the sugar tax used to subsidise a relatively limited number of food items such as vegetables, fruit, beans and wholegrain rice, so that everyone can buy enough food to feed themselves and their families. I'm not a fan of banning anything, so would keep pizza, chocolate and gin on the shelves, but would make healthier choices more attractive financially as well as good for our diets.

The weather has had a big effect. Farmers are having to buy feed for their animals because the grass has dried up without rain. Crops and harvests will also be low this year for the same reason.

David49

“Exactly who is raking in the profits? “

That’s easy Tesco declared £3 billion profit last year.

Precisely!

keepingquiet

It is also to do with costs and supply, especially since we left the EU. This is what people said they didn't mind when they voted for Brexit.

The food inflation rate in the EU was 3.9% July 2025, only 0.3% less than us…

It is also to do with costs and supply, especially since we left the EU. This is what people said they didn't mind when they voted for Brexit.

“Exactly who is raking in the profits? “

That’s easy Tesco declared £3 billion profit last year.