Yahoo News Great British salad shortage could spread to carrots and parsnips
The Great British salad shortage could spread to carrots, parsnips and other vegetables after weather forecasters predicted a cold snap which could send temperatures plunging to 5F (-15C).
Iceberg lettuces, aubergines, broccoli, courgettes and cabbage are already being rationed as supermarkets struggle to meet demand following heavy rains in Southern Spain, which have damaged crops.
Now local supplies are also under threat, as British farmers face frozen fields just as they harvest their root vegetables. The supply shortage should see prices rising, experts have warned.
Gardening expert and Telegraph columnist Lia Leendertz said: “There is usually a cold snap around about the end of February, but it the ground gets too frozen then it is difficult to harvest vegetables. And if that is the case then demand could outstrip supply and we could see prices go up.
“It could also make some vegetables slow down, such as asparagus, and maybe rhubarb, so we could see later crops.
“The good news is that it increases the sugar so the vegetables we do get are likely to be sweeter.”
The big freeze, which could last several weeks, is being caused by an event known as ‘Sudden Stratospheric Warming’ (SSW) which causes the swirling winds at the North Pole, known as the Polar Vortex, to move over Britain, bringing Arctic temperatures.
In its most recent briefing to the Cabinet Office, the Met Office said that the chance of the phenomenon occurring was ‘higher than normal’ and warned temperatures would ‘stay on the cold side’ with frosty nights until March.
The last SSW event to hit Britain was in early 2013, which brought the coldest March for 51 years.
“If easterly air reaches the UK and becomes established, temperatures could fall as low as -15C,” said forecaster Brian Gaze of The Weather Outlook.
Natural weather forecaster David King, author of Weather Without Technology, said it was clear that cold weather was coming because so few flowers were blooming.
“Last year on 4th February I photographed and catalogued 29 different flowering plants in a six mile ramble. This year I did exactly the same walk and found just six flowering plants. Nature protects its own, it will not flower if severe weather is still to come,” he said.
“Any major cold snap will cause problems, in that the ground will freeze solid making getting the vegetables out difficult, and also some, like sprouts will fill with frost and inedible.
“Deep snow will make the ground unworkable. Vegetable farmers are used to such problems and overcome them, but it is expensive, and, as a result prices will rise.”
Britain’s salads could also be impacted by a shortage of olive oil, after government officials in Spain warned that the deadly bacteria Xylella fastidiosa had been found in groves on the Balearic Islands.
The disease has already affected thousands of olive trees in Italy and experts are rushing to control the new Spanish outbreak before it spreads to the mainland.
Around half of olive oil in Britain comes from Spain and prices could rise if more groves become infected. An export ban on live plants from islands including Majorca has been imposed to prevent the spread.
Olive oil expert Judy Ridgway, said: “Spain contributes around 1.5 million metric tonnes of olive oil around the world so it is a major producer, and it sends a lot to Britain.
“The Balearics don’t produce a great amount of oil but the worry is that it could spread to the mainland. Luckily most of the big producers are inland, but there are some large groves at the coast.
“If the bigger producers were affected, we could see price rises in Britain, but at the moment it’s difficult to predict.”
