Bedfordshire farmer says it's 'impossible to turn a profit' due to drought
Prolonged hot, dry weather has slashed crop yields, leaving many farmers unable to break even
A Bedfordshire farmer says the industry is struggling to even break even because of the prolonged hot, dry weather this year.
The Environment Agency officially declared yesterday that central, eastern and southern England is now experiencing a flash drought.
Drought conditions cover more than half (51.4%) of the country, as July has so far seen just 7% of its long-term average rainfall.
Freya Morgan, a farmer in north Bedfordshire, said she had lost 2.5 tonnes of crop per hectare this year. Across the land she farms for herself and other people, she estimates that amounts to losses of between £600,000 and £700,000.
She told Greatest Hits Radio: “Harvest has been really early and the yields have been very poor.
“We're combining oats at the moment, and we will finish cutting those tomorrow. That is the first time, I've checked back in my diaries, that we've actually finished harvest in July.
“Normally we'd finish around beginning of September in what we used to call a normal year. I don't know what normal is anymore.”
Ms Morgan said this is making it impossible for farmers to turn a profit, after only breaking even over the past two years.
She said: “No arable farmer within the drought hit areas is going to break even, let alone make a profit.”
She added: “I'm sure some people are seriously thinking, ‘do I put a crop in next year?’
“We have to remember, we've still got bills to pay and we're not making any profit to pay those bills. So the businesses will probably go under, unless we can get some form of support.”