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“If we want to harvest British fruits and vegetables this year, we need an army of people to help us,” said Prince Charles from his residence in Scotland.
“It just caught our eye then. But it is very important if we want this crop to be used,” added the aristocrat.
Prince Charles, like the country’s government, is well aware of the situation. In the UK, farmers are highly dependent on migrants from Eastern European countries, especially Romania and Bulgaria.
Reuters / Photo by Scanpix / Prince Charles
However, the new coronavirus pandemic in Europe has almost stopped the movement of people. Even after Eastern European workers were flown on special plane flights, there is a labor shortage in the fields.
And this is due not only to travel restrictions, but also to the natural fear of people going to the UK. The highest number of deaths among infected people in this country is in Europe, with more than 36,000.
The work is hard
Until now, there has been no shortage of food in stores in the UK during the pandemic. But even Prince Charles himself pointed out that fruits and vegetables, if no one picks them up, will simply rot.
In fact, so many people have responded to his call to travel and “work for Britain” that a dedicated website has stalled this week. Reviewers were immediately pleased to find: the myth that the British are lazy.
But there is a hook. Peeling soft berries and carefully picking vegetables is not easy, and you pay relatively little for such physical activity.
British farmers typically hire more than 70,000. seasonal workers.
Therefore, farmers are likely to have a well-founded fear that very few of the thousands of Britons who have completed their applications will go to work or yet endure the field throughout the season when they arrive, especially if they need to get dirty. hands.
British farmers typically hire more than 70,000. seasonal workers. In the spring and summer of each year, they invade the country, picking various herbs or apples.
Reuters / Scanpix Photo / Tomatoes
Daily earnings are around 115 euros, and you generally work six days a week. Last year it was estimated that only 1% of all workers in the fields in the UK. they were british
It was also feared that there would be a shortage of black workers in the country when negotiating Brexit. However, this process of UK withdrawal from the EU appears to have been a laugh compared to the pandemic attacks, with downtime of up to 7.5 million people as the outbreak accelerated. people, and the walls closed.
After the downtime will you rush back to the cities?
Christine Snell, spokeswoman for A.J & C.I Snell in The Washington Post, said she had already hired 200 workers from Eastern Europe this year. Everyone is already very busy.
Ch.Snell added that he also contacted 45 Britons by mail, but only 14 of them agreed to come to the farm. Also, the British will only come now and only take care of the environment. They will not pick strawberries because they need to work professionally and quickly, which is a problem.
Scanpix Photo / Berries
“I am very concerned about who will come and how many will be left.” They may have a misconception about what lies ahead: They see a beautiful summer, a good job together, “says Snell.
Jack Ward, head of the British Growers Association, revealed data from an internal survey. On many farms, it will appear that there are enough workers in May: “I like it, because you never know if those volunteers will come.”
“But if everything goes according to plan, about a third of the seasonal workforce will be British, which is a very significant increase,” Ward said, adding that he had concerns about British productivity. – Now the salad collection is gaining momentum.
A million salad heads are removed a day. This is a huge logistical challenge: Newcomers alone will not be enough. “
Reuters / Scanpix Photo / Tomato UK
Farmers also do not rule out the possibility that the British, who are currently spending days off, coming to work in the fields, have the tools as soon as possible to return to the old jobs.
“I don’t think they are sitting there and telling themselves that they have done well.” “They just crossed their fingers and repeat that everything will be fine next week and maybe another week,” said J. Ward.
Elsewhere, there are also many problems.
Other European countries have already faced problems. French asparagus growers sometimes had to let these plants dry out because they did not find enough people to collect them.
Reuters / Photo by Scanpix / Sidra
The German Ministry of Agriculture launched a special website that attempts to link currently inactive workers and students with farmers in need of labor.
Not many of those people showed up, so the Germans also had to fly tens of thousands of Romanians.
The coming weeks promise to be very difficult for British farmers. After all, Romania’s borders are still closed, and the British government warns that all newcomers will be forced to remain in quarantine for two weeks.
In this country, there is even a need to allay fears that the work is too hard. For example, the same portal quotes 19-year-old Yvonne: “I am tired, but not as tired as I thought.”
In the UK, it is difficult to lure the British to often remote farms: if you do not want to live in mobile homes you have to cover a considerable distance every day while working. And the cost of transportation immediately crosses the rewards.
The coming weeks promise to be very difficult for the country’s farmers. After all, Romania’s borders are still closed, and the British government warns that all newcomers will be forced to remain in quarantine for two weeks.
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