Fresh produce is being held up by Coronavirus. Fresh fruit and vegetables is becoming increasingly more difficult to obtain from retailers as measures to combat Coronavirus bite. The impact according to Reuters is felt mainly in Europe but also in the USA because the pandemic is spoiling the global movement of produce and people who are not able to gather crops. Rabobank, the Dutch banking business reported that ‘fresh produce foodservice demand has “virtually stopped” in Europe’.
Rabobank also reported that overall sales volumes of fresh produce were expected to remain at pre-disease levels with a probable increase in demand. This was in recognition of increased requirements for home-cooking where a higher level of fruit and vegetable consumption usually occurs compared to take-outs and other out-of-home dining experiences.
In mid-March of 2020, the fresh produce retail sales increased over 30% year-on-year in the USA. Likewise, frozen produce sales doubled because of a need to eat at home and the impact of stockpiling particular convenience goods. Rabobank concede that there may be improvements in healthier eating because of the focus on using fresher produce. There is also the impact of the foodservice sector being unable to meet demand which is currently unprecedented.
To ease the shortage, European governments are having to look at new ways to manage the supply chain. One method is to apply ‘green lanes’ which promote the movement of fresh produce in particular across European Union borders. It also means finding what has been described as a ‘shadow army’ of people to harvest the food and relax the rules that govern travel for migrant workers.
The lack of workers generally on farms, especially migrant and seasonal workers means that European suppliers have not been able to pick many crops. This is affecting the asparagus season for example. The closure of borders has meant they simply cannot travel abroad. It also means that on arrival all workers must abide by strict guidelines on social distancing. The impact also affects workers in the USA who must follow guidelines in individual states. The impact of low levels of a workforce means that packing and distribution is severely curtailed. In the USA, the seasonal workers coming from Mexico remains uncertain. In Australia and New Zealand which is coming into their autumn means that reliance on back packers and others for harvesting has all but disappeared.
Rabobank state in their report:-
“A possible solution to labor shortages is recruiting students or people from other sectors, such as tourism and hospitality, who are unemployed due to the Covid-19 crisis. In Europe, growers are trying to collectively organise charter flights for Romanian workers circumventing border checks.”
In the EU, border restrictions which are designed to stem the movement of the virus have also meant that waiting at the border can take up to 18 hours. The European Commission has requested that all 27 members employ methods to allow the freer movement of essential goods along the ‘green lanes’ with border crossings taking only 15 minutes instead.
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