UK supermarkets face tomato shortages

Supplies of some fruit and vegetables, including tomatoes, to UK supermarkets have been disrupted by poor weather in Europe and Africa.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said that harvests had been hit by "difficult weather conditions".

Numerous pictures of empty shelves in supermarkets have been circulating on social media in recent days.

Sources within the industry have acknowledged that there have been temporary supply challenges.

Among the images shared on social media, the shortage of tomatoes appears to be particularly significant.

A significant proportion of the tomatoes we consume over the winter months are grown in Morocco and Southern Spain. Both regions have recently been affected first by warm weather - which affected crop yields - then by a cold snap which has meant longer growth times.

Cancelled ferries from Morocco due to bad weather have also affected supplies.

Andrew Opie, director of food and sustainability at the BRC, said supermarkets were "adept at managing supply chain issues and are working with farmers to ensure that customers are able to access a wide range of fresh produce".

However, other businesses have also been affected.

The Heritage Fine Food Company in Wiltshire, a wholesaler which supplies restaurants, cafes and schools in the south west of England, warned on its website that sourcing tomatoes was "incredibly challenging".

Cucumbers, it said, were "incredibly limited in supply", while peppers were failing to ripen.

A portion of the fruit and vegetables the UK imports during the winter comes from the Netherlands, where they are grown in large greenhouses.

While it is clear that the businesses producing them have been badly affected by high energy prices, it is not clear whether that has had an impact on supplies in the UK.