£4.8bn Arable Revenue Shortfall Hits UK Farmers

Arable farmers in the UK are facing an estimated £4.8 billion crop-revenue shortfall due to three consecutive difficult harvests, according to the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU).

The ECIU estimates that production of wheat, barley, oats, and oilseed rape across the 2024, 2025, and 2026 harvests will be 14.4 million tonnes below the 2014-2023 average.

This translates to a £4.8 billion loss in revenue when adjusted for inflation, with the value of the shortfall varying depending on crop prices and inflation assumptions.

Tom Lancaster, land, food, and farming analyst at the ECIU, said that extreme weather conditions have affected wheat and spring barley yields, leaving farmers facing their third poor harvest in a row.