In an environment of widespread labor shortages due to epidemics and Brexit, the UK needs 15,000 butchers – a sector federation reported today, warning of a risk of shortages of some traditional products this Christmas.
A spokesman for the British Meat Processors Association told the Times: The labor shortage had to focus on providing basic cuts to supermarkets.
“We should have started preparing Christmas food in June or July, but so far we haven’t done that,” he said, warning that “there will be a shortage of festive items like sausage wrapped in bacon”. British people.
The shortage of truck drivers has been causing fuel supply problems for weeks, causing shortages and long queues at gas stations in recent days.
Supermarkets, fast food chains and bars are plagued by supply problems that could be exacerbated by labor shortages in production.
According to the Times, Boris Johnson’s government is considering easing immigration conditions to issue work visas to 1,000 foreign butchers in an effort to avoid shortages.
The Ministry of Environment and Food assured the British news agency AP that it was “continuing to work” with the pork sector to “explore options for coping with current pressures”.
Faced with the risk of seeing empty stores at Christmas, Johnson has decided to issue about 10,000 three-month work visas to truck drivers by the end of the year. The operation will include workers from some other important sectors, such as poultry farms.
Asked about meat visas, the Interior Ministry said the “other countries in the world face similar challenges” and said that “employers want to invest in British national labor for a longer period of time than relying on foreign workers”.
On Thursday, the PRA said British gas stations would continue to suffer from fuel shortages, in defiance of government demands. Officials say last week’s crisis caused by drivers failing to refuel.
It was still possible to find long queues at service stations on Thursdays, especially in London and the south of England.
Army drivers are expected to be mobilized to help defuse the crisis in the coming days. The government says it was triggered by a panic among the public after some suppliers announced the closure of the pump due to a lack of truck drivers to carry fuel from storage terminals.
