Changes to business rates, minimum pay, inheritance tax, and apprenticeship funding herald winners and losers across the industry with the impact set to trickle down to consumers in the coming months as inflationary pressure increases on the UK’s food system.  FreshTalk Daily takes a look at the key changes and mixed industry reactions to Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Autumn Budget on Wednesday 26 November. Wages The National Living Wage will increase by 4.1% to £12.71 an hour f

Aldi, Co-op, Lidl, and Morrisons have announced cost-saving initiatives, including price cuts on everyday items like fresh produce, to help struggling households this winter as new research from New Covent Garden Market reveals British consumers are eating more vegetables at Christmas.  Aldi and Lidl are slashing prices of traditional festive vegetables to 8p to help shoppers budget for their Christmas food shopping.  Co-op, meanwhile, is injecting £1bn across a range of meas

DP World’s new Atlas Service is officially on the water after the first reefer containers were loaded onto the M/V BF Carp on Tuesday (25 November), marking the historic launch of this transformative shipping route that will deliver Moroccan fresh produce to buyers and retailers in the UK and Europe via a quicker, greener, and more reliable service. Image: DP World Departing from the Port of Agadir, the inaugural northbound voyage is now bound for London Gateway and Antwerp G

As Rachel Reeves stands up in the Commons today to deliver her Autumn Budget, Britain’s fruit and vegetable growers will be watching with a mix of anxiety and very cautious hope. This is the second Budget from the new Labour government , set against weak growth, a sizeable fiscal gap and heavy pressure to raise revenue without touching manifesto promises on income tax, VAT or National Insurance. For horticulture, the stakes are unusually high. The long-running EU-legacy Fruit

A cross-party group of MPs has sounded the alarm ahead of the upcoming Autumn Budget — calling it the “last chance” for government action if the UK wants to continue supporting domestic fruit and vegetable producers. Their warning comes as the UK Fruit and Veg Aid Scheme (UK-FVAS) and associated producer-organisation funding remain scheduled to end on 31 December 2025 , with no confirmed replacement yet in sight. In a letter addressed to the environment department, the group

There’s a subtle but sure revolution happening across the British countryside, and you won’t spot it in a headline or an annual review — you’ll see it in the cab of a tractor. There’s a younger farmer at the helm, phone in hand, flipping between yield maps, WhatsApp groups and weather radars while the tractor glides along neatly on auto-steer. It’s subtle, almost unassuming, but it’s exactly the kind of shift that changes everything. Because these younger digital-minded farme

Asda has agreed to sell 24 of its supermarkets along with a key distribution depot in a deal valued at £568 million, marking a major move to strengthen its financial position. The agreement includes 24 retail sites and a distribution depot in Lutterworth, Leicestershire. Ownership will transfer to multiple investment groups: US investment firm Blue Owl Capital will acquire 10 of the stores plus the Lutterworth depot. A joint venture between Blue Owl and Supermarket Income REI

Britain is eating fewer vegetables than at any point in the past half-century, with consumption continuing to slide despite years of public-health campaigns — as reported by The Times . According to national dietary data, the average weekly intake of fresh and processed vegetables (excluding potatoes) has fallen by around 12 % since 1974, dropping to under 1 kg per person. The decline is particularly stark among long-loved British staples: cabbage consumption has plummeted by

In a state-of-the-art facility in Essex, researchers are simulating tomorrow’s climate today in order to bolster the resilience of major crops against rising temperatures, humidity shifts and altered growth cycles. At the heart of the endeavour is the Smart Technology Experimental Plant Suite (STEPS) — a growth room complex designed to recreate the conditions normally associated with tropical rice paddies or subtropical onion fields. Inside, plants experience elevated heat an

The introduction of a full ban on peat in 2026 marks a disruptive yet important shift towards sustainability but varying readiness across domestic and international supply chains as well as the feasibility of peat alternatives remains a question for the horticulture industry.  Growers, garden centres, and European suppliers must transition to peat-free growing media to comply with the regulation.  Technical, financial, and perceptual barriers persist, however, with peat havin

Samskip has officially launched its direct Morocco to Europe service bringing fresh produce straight to the UK on the first weekly express reefer container ship to call at the London Container Terminal (LCT) in Tilbury. Image: Forth Ports The Samskip Toubkal made its inaugural call at LCT carrying Moroccan fresh produce, including tomatoes and citrus, ready for delivery to UK supermarkets. The news marks the second historic moment this week for the faster, cleaner and more re

Italian agronomist Isabella Dalla Ragione is leading efforts to save Italy’s forgotten fruit varieties by searching abandoned orchards and gardens in the hope of helping growers cope with climate change. Image: © Tiziana FABI / AFP Her work as part of the Archeologia Arborea foundation focuses on finding rare apples, pears, cherries, plums, peaches, and almonds cited in centuries-old diaries, farming documents, and Renaissance art.  To date, the 68-year-old has amassed a coll

Shoppers in the UK are still paying more for their weekly shop as food prices continue to increase for many staple grocery basket items, including vegetables, according to the latest ONS figures. While the rate of inflation in the UK fell to 3.6% in the 12 months to October – its lowest level since March, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said food and non-alcoholic drink inflation jumped to 4.9%  during the same period, following the dip seen in September. Consumers a

One of the UK’s leading vegetable suppliers Staples Vegetables is joining forces with global agribusiness investment firm Solum Partners to fuel the growth, innovation, and sustainability initiatives that will position the family-run business for the future.  Image: Staples Vegetables The grower-supplier of fresh and organic vegetables explained in a press release that the strategic partnership will support the expansion of both its produce operation and energy division, whic

Industry body GB Potatoes has launched a Potato Industry Confidence Survey to help ensure the sector remains competitive and sustainable by identifying where future collaboration and targeted investment can deliver the greatest impact. The survey will capture a comprehensive picture of grower sentiment, production trends, and the factors shaping the sector’s future across Great Britain in an effort to maximise its considerable potential. Funded through residual potato levy fu

If there’s one phrase that captures where the fresh-produce sector is heading, it’s this: 2026 will be the year of discovery. For UK importers, buyers, wholesalers and international exporters alike, new logistics routes, smarter cold-chain technology and evolving trade frameworks are reshaping what’s possible — and crucially, what’s profitable. And the most striking sign so far? The launch of DP World’s new Atlas service , a Morocco–UK–Europe route that feels nothing short of

British farmers fear that their ability to use gene-edited crops could be severely curtailed under Keir Starmer’s proposed reset of relations with the European Union, according to industry concerns. Under the current plans for closer agricultural and food-trade alignment with Brussels, UK cultivation of precision-bred crops developed using gene-editing techniques may face constraints similar to those in the EU — effectively amounting to a ban for many British growers. What’

Fyffes, the global banana and fruit producers and distributors, has released recent European-wide consumer research which confirms the popularity of bananas as the consumer’s No. 1 favourite fruit. Image courtesy of Fyffes The research, undertaken by NielsenIQ with over 7000 consumers across Europe, shows that bananas continue to be the public’s favourite fruit with a massive 89% of consumers confirming that they have eaten bananas ‘within the previous four weeks’. Second fav

In a major boost to fresh-produce logistics, DP World has launched its new DP World Atlas service, creating a dedicated shipping link between Morocco, the UK and Europe. The move marks a significant shift in how fruit and vegetables will move across the region, promising faster, cleaner and more reliable transport for exporters and buyers alike. Image courtesy of DP World The inaugural vessel, the M/V BF Carp, arrived in the Port of Agadir yesterday (17 November), delivering

Major changes to the UK’s electricity transmission charging system are set to come into effect in April 2026, and greenhouse growers are warning that the shift could add significant pressure to an already-strained sector. Image: Now Then Energy National Grid’s roadmap for an upgraded transmission network will introduce higher fixed monthly charges for many commercial users, including controlled-environment horticulture. These charges will be based on voltage level and agreed