BRITAIN is facing a roast dinner nightmare because protests by Irish farmers have caused a shortage of beef in UK supermarkets.
Farmers are annoyed by the low prices set by suppliers driving down the cost of their produce.
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Protests at factories all over the Ireland has caused the beef industry to a near standstill – and it’s driving up prices for shoppers too.
Tesco has already run out of a handful of products online, such as packets of mince and steaks.
While prices of some products are up to 8 per cent more expensive, according to MySupermarket.com.
Britain produces around 60 to 70 per cent of its own beef, according to the British Meat Production Association (BMPA), but 70 per cent of all imported beef comes from Ireland.
Prices haven’t shot up across the board though, with many supermarkets still able to run promotions.
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Here’s how to cut the cost of your grocery shop
SAVING on your shop can make a big difference to your wallet. Here are some tips from Hannah Maundrell, editor of Money.co.uk, about how you can cut the cost of your shopping bills:
- Write yourself a list – Only buy items that you need. If it isn’t on your list, don’t put it in the trolley
- Create a budget – Work out a weekly budget for your food shopping
- Never shop hungry – you are far more likely to buy more food if your tummy is rumbling
- Don’t buy pre-chopped veggies or fruit – The extra they’ll charge for chopping can be eye watering
- Use social media – follow your favourite retailers to find out about the latest deals
- Be disloyal – You may want to go to different stores to find the best bargains
- Check the small print – It’s always worth checking the price per kg/lb/litre when comparing offers so you’re making a like for like decision as a bigger box won’t necessarily mean you get more
- Use your loyalty cards – Don’t be afraid to sign up to them all. They all work slightly differently – work out what bonus suits you better and remember to trade in your points for additional rewards
“Supermarkets try to keep meat prices as low as possible,” Nick Allen from BMPA explained to The Sun, “but the supply shortage is most likely to be because of the protests in Ireland.
“They could have also caused a slight price hike, although we often see the cost of beef go up a little around this time of year as the weather gets colder and people go back to their roast dinners.”
Irish farmers took a stand over poor meat prices and as a result slowed down 80 per cent of Ireland’s beef production.
The walk outs, which have been going on and off since August, ended on Sunday after an agreement was reached but it can take a while before production gets back to normal.
“Now that everything seems to be resolved, we hope to see things back to normal by next week,” said Nick.
Morrisons says that it doesn’t stock Irish beef while Tesco said that it was working with suppliers to “avoid any shortages for customers.”
The British Retail Consortium, the trade body for retailers in the UK, did not wish to comment.
Supermarkets have been accused of offering “misleading discounts by pushing up prices” before launching deals.
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