How Brexit threatens Britain's summertime strawberries

Agence France Presse

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2017/news/06/22/062217_berry.jpg"/><figcaption><div class="embed-desc">Strawberries. <cite>Reuters</cite></div></figcaption></figure></div><p>LONDON, United Kingdom - Brexit has brought uncertainty to millions of people and sent the pound plummeting, but the EU divorce could also hit Britain&#x27;s sweet taste of summer -- strawberries.</p><p>With Brexit talks now under way, there are fears Britain will cut the number of European pickers which play an essential role in bring strawberries to picnics nationwide.</p><p>&quot;This is as extreme as it gets,&quot; said Laurence Olins, chair of industry body British Summer Fruits which published a new Brexit report on Thursday.</p><p>&quot;It is inconceivable that people who voted to leave the European Union wanted to destroy an iconic and incredibly competitive British horticulture industry, and see the end of buying British produce,&quot; he added.</p><p>The study by British Summer Fruits estimates 95 percent of Britain&#x27;s 29,000 seasonal workers hail from European Union countries, predicting demand will rise to 31,000 by 2020.</p><p>A parliamentary paper published earlier in June said the figure was far higher -- with around 75,000 temporary workers during peak seasons, of which 98 percent were from the EU.</p><p>A drop in fruit pickers travelling to the UK could lead to fewer strawberries being grown in the country, casting a cloud over the British summer.</p><p>In a further dent to national pride, Britons would have to rely on imported strawberries -- and stomach price rises of up to 50 percent.</p><p>The British Summer Fruits report calls for a permit scheme to allow European pickers to work in the UK for short-term contracts after Brexit, protecting the industry from labor shortages.</p><div><strong>rsc/cw</strong></div><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div>

<p>LONDON, United Kingdom - Brexit has brought uncertainty to millions of people and sent the pound plummeting, but the EU divorce could also hit Britain's sweet taste of summer -- strawberries.</p>

LONDON, United Kingdom - Brexit has brought uncertainty to millions of people and sent the pound plummeting, but the EU divorce could also hit Britain's sweet taste of summer -- strawberries.

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How Brexit threatens Britain's summertime strawberries

How Brexit threatens Britain's summertime strawberries

Agence France Presse

Published Jun 22, 2017 10:40 AM PHT

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Updated Jun 22, 2017 10:43 AM PHT

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British Summer Fruits

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