Government is rightly worried that If Brexit goes through, there may be food shortages, at least in short term. But question is why, who is at fault! Answer is starring in our face. Government, the corridor of power is the culprit and to lesser extent business and public at large.
Britain is fertile land with rainfall throughout the year. British people are industrious, inventers, used to lead the world with 20% share of world trade, now lingering at just 1%. Whenever we go shopping, we would like to buy British goods, especially on food front. So we were indeed surprised, even flabbergasted to see so many food items which we can easily, even cheaply produce locally were imported.
In our local supermarket which we visit regularly, we found products such as milk, yogurt, cheese, biscuits, hard toast, bakery food and specialized food items such as sugar and lactose free products imported from none other than Scandinavian countries, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark. These are most expensive countries with highest living standard! Not surprisingly, their annual income is nearly double compared to ours.
Those who have visited these countries on holidays, not many we presume, except as stop-over while cruising Baltic Sea, as these countries are much colder and extremely expensive for tourists to visit. We were fortunate in having friends and family members settled there. A cup of tea and coffee may cost from £5 to £10 and a pint of lager or a glass of wine not less than £10.
Their food products we buy here in our supermarkets cost at least twice locally, in Scandinavia compared to what we pay here. So how come our supermarkets find it cheaper to import rather than buy locally produced foods, as such imports also incur hefty transport cost! Could it be illegally subsidized! Can our politicians through some light, educate us! Same applies to fresh flowers, roses, carnations, lilies and soft fruits and vegetables we consume here are imported from Netherland which is the leading exporter of these products throughout the world, especially Middle East.
The fault-line lies fairly and squarely at the foot of our politicians, especially local councils who deny our farmers to erect and grow these products under giant greenhouses, under the guise of protecting countryside. Would we ever learn!
Bhupendra M. Gandhi
By email
