Fruit and vegetable offerings in British supermarkets may soon take a hit, a thinktank has warned.
Spain and Morocco, key suppliers for UK shops, have been impacted by heavy flooding in recent weeks.
A succession of storms has brought heavy rain and destroyed large amounts of crops in both countries.
This leaves several types of fruits and vegetables at risk of shortages.
Spain and Morocco jointly account for 57.9% of all UK tomato imports, according to an analysis by the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) thinktank.
The vast majority of imported cucumbers (65.2%) and sweet peppers (71.4%) are also from Spain, and over a third of strawberries and raspberries (36%) are from Morocco.
Tom Lancaster, land, food and farming analyst at ECIU, said it was “too early to say” whether the recent floods will disrupt supply for British shoppers but pointed to previous knock-on effects on supermarket offerings.
In early 2023, extreme weather in the Mediterranean region led to empty shelves in the UK, with Tesco limiting sales of some fruit and vegetables.
More such disruption is to be expected, he added, as climate change makes extreme weather more frequent.
Retailers considering alternative sources
Andrew Opie, director of food and sustainability at the UK’s retail association, the British Retail Consortium, acknowledged that difficult conditions have “impacted the harvest for some crops”.
But he also told Sky News food retailers were “adept at managing disruption and will take all necessary measures, including sourcing from alternative sources, to minimise any impact on customers”.
Sky News understands that some big retailers are indeed facing challenges but remain confident they can protect supply due to a broad sourcing approach.