Independent review into labour shortages in the food supply chain
The review provides recommendations to help the government and industry continue to tackle the issues related to labour shortages in the food supply chain.
Documents
Details
The review considers the challenges facing food and farming businesses to recruit and retain a sufficient workforce. This follows the Government Food Strategy commitment to commission an independent review to tackle labour shortages in the food supply chain.
The objective of the review is to provide industry and government with recommendations to consider the roles of automation, domestic employment and migration routes to mitigate and reverse labour shortage trends in the food supply chain.
It provides 10 key recommendations on how to ensure businesses can access the labour they require on a more effective basis, to put the sector on a more sustainable, long-term footing. The insights gathered from the review will inform the ongoing and future policy work of the government, particularly in addressing labour shortages. The recommendations aim to enable businesses to access the labour they require more effectively, facilitating continued growth and development of the sector.
The report focusses on the labour needs of the production and processing sectors, which are critical for producing food. The sectors considered by the review are:
- farming sectors including pigs, eggs, poultry, red meat, dairy, arable and edible horticulture
- primary processing including meat processing and seafood processing
- food and non-alcoholic drink manufacturing
The report launched in June 2023 and the government response will follow later in 2023.