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In the last year, labour shortages have cost the UK food and drink industry an estimated £1.4 billion due to loss of output, according to a new report. The Food and Drink Federation's (FDF) State of Industry report found that in the last year, from July 2022, during the last quarter, the cost has been £192 million. Food and drink is said to be the UK’s largest manufacturing sector, which has continued to have vacancy rates higher than those in wider manufacturing, according to the FDF. 57% of food and drink manufacturers have vacancy rates of up to 5%, with mid-sized businesses that have a turnover of £26-£500 million experiencing the brunt of the shortages, with half of them reporting vacancies of up to 10%, almost three times the national average. Vacancy rates represent the percentage of vacant positions in an organisation over a specific period of time. Unfilled vacancies continue to affect a wide range of roles in the sector, such as project engineers, scientists, lab technologists and plant engineering technicians, as recruits “often overlook the food manufacturing industry”. The UK government is due to respond to the Independent Review into Labour Shortages published in June by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) this autumn. The review looked at the challenges faced by food and farming businesses to “recruit and retain a sufficient workforce”. Ahead of the response, food businesses are calling on the government to sign up to the ten recommendations outlined in the review, such as “Reform the Apprenticeship Levy” and “Access to Migrant Labour”. FDF director for growth, Balwinder Dhoot, said: “Significant labour shortages have cost businesses £1.4 billion over the last year, with companies being forced to leave vacancies unfilled and reduce production – all of which contributes to rising wage bills, higher prices and stifles growth, which is vital for a strong economy”. He added: “Investment is essential if we are to build a sustainable and resilient food supply chain which supports the economy and feeds the nation. Our members are unable to expand their operations, principally because they haven’t got the staff. We need government to work with the industry to implement all ten recommendations in the Independent Review into Labour Shortages and to deliver the Prime Minister’s commitment to grow the economy.”