Food shortages hit UK as Brexiters and Remainers argue over who’s to blame

Tesco, Penzance


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Food shortages have hit the UK, allegedly due to the impacts of Brexit. Remainers seem almost gleeful that they’ve been proven right. Equally, however, those who still support leaving the EU are in a state of denial.

The shortages seem to be due to a mix of weather issues, fuel, and several other factors – including Brexit. All this comes as Aldi, Asda, and Morrisons announced they were rationing vegetables.

Empty shelves

Various outlets tweeted images of empty supermarket shelves, including the Jeremy Vine show:

CNN reporter Ika Ferrer Gotić also got in on the act, putting the shortfall squarely down to Brexit:

Farage to blame?

EU Flag Twitter seemed to be quite enthused about something new to have a go at Nigel Farage about – and fair play to them really:

Broadcaster Jemma Forte shared a report from Ukraine which claimed that it was easier to get tomatoes in the war-ravaged country than in the UK:

Another Twitter user reminded us how the warnings about Brexit which had largely been downplayed have repeatedly proven true:

And a WW2 museum in Liverpool jokingly (probably) urged visitors not to eat the plastic from its displays:

Brexit denials

Naturally some of the more fanatical Brexiters opted to blame the news on some sort of woke vegetable conspiracy. Shockingly for everyone, one of these was right-wing Twitter silly person Darren Grimes:

Meanwhile, agriculture minister Thérèse Coffey took to the House of Commons and, with typical dynamism, urged people to engage with the mighty British turnip:

A lot of people would be eating turnips right now rather than thinking necessarily about aspects of lettuce and tomatoes and similar, but I’m conscious that consumers want a year-round choice and that is what our supermarkets, food producers and growers around the world try to satisfy.

Though precisely which aspects of lettuce she meant remains unclear. Possibly the metaphysical; who can say?

Rise of the planet of the Megaherons

However, first prize must go to Twitter satirist TechnicallyRon. Ron conjured a vision we can all get behind: of Britain as a tomato-less wasteland in which gigantic mutant heron carries away our children:

And I don’t know about you, but if the other option is listening to EU Flag Twitter and Darren Grimes shriek at each other on Twitter, I’ll take a lonely death in the sodden trenches of the coming Turnip Wars every time.

Featured image via Wikimedia Commons/David Smith, cropped to 770 x 403, licenced under CC BY 2.0.

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  • Show Comments

    1. Given that the UK, like any other country, has always had periodic shortages of foodstuffs, it seems strange to blame our exit from the EU. There seems at least an equal amount of evidence that climate change might be one cause for the overseas shortage of tomatoes and cucumbers, along with capitalism – energy corporations’ massive price increases making it harder for UK growers to heat greenhouses.

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      1. The difference is that the rest of Europe has plenty of food. We would too if we were still in Europe. Politics matter – its stark to see the difference between the response to the earthquake in Turkey and Syria, and it’s just as clear between the EU and UK food availability.

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    2. Seeing, when UK joined EU, our farmers were subsidised to grow what EU encouraged, stipulated and cajoled UK farmers to grow or not to grow. A hitherto patchwork landscape of varied grown crops, orchards and under-glass expanses of greenhouses together with grazing for beef and dairy was in part viciously grubbed-up of ancient hedgerow fields and orchards as well as hop fields making way for large mega-fields growing 1-crop such as Rape Seed Oil plant which when beautifully blooming in June colours agrarian and arable landscapes near and far and over the horizon as far as the eye can see in 1-crop yellow, yellow and more yellow. No wonder we’re short in the shops with continental drought-ridden impedings of delivery from dry or sodden-soaked continental farms seeing as we have to import so much from those continental farms of our fruit ‘n veg we used to grow ourselves.

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      1. Yes ~ I did vote as a Labour Leaver to leave the EU. Why would one vote Remain in order to have our William Blake, Thomas Hardy and Constable Country landscape grubbed up for one crop mega treeless, hedgeless monster fields of yellow flowers made into cooking oil or as animal feed other than growing as an indifferent fielded byline humble turnips that, at least, Brits are able to eat proudly as homegrown?

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    3. Microbe, the Common Agricultural Policy LEFT SUCH CHOICES TO THE COUNTRIES.

      Regarde La Frogs – THEY used the CAP to support SMALL farmers, the ones who keep THEIR supermarkets stocked with all manner of small and localised produce.

      The UK decided to fund the ultra-wealthy Landowners instead, quelle surprises.

      At least get your BeLeaver BS accurate!

      “Taking Back Control!” didn’t mean for the PLEBS, you morons.

      Of COURSE Brexshit is largely to blame! Now it takes up to 70 hours for Dutch lorries to clear ALL THE MASSIVE NEW BUREAUCRATIC PAPERWORK.

      The sheer domestic incompetence of the UK (And the completely interlinked effect of the Class System, and tiered Education) was partly obscured by the European’s enforced competence on many many matters, there are several FANTASTIC reasons why the UK Civil Service, who have to daily deal with the nincompoops WE keep electing, overwhelming were in favour of Remoaning.

      The rules and regulations kept the likes of Truss in check.

      Still, they DID make a nice bonfire.

      If only there was some salad to eat with the barby. 🙁

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