Opportunities ahead for UK Food Processing and Production Sector
The UK food industry has always been considered to be the largest manufacturing sector in the country. Employing 4 million people and generating around £121 billion annually, it always exhibited strong potential for a promising future. However, anxiety about Brexit and the UK’s trade relationships with the EU appear to be leading up to dire economic consequences, and the industry’s upward trajectory could plummet quickly. Food processing and production companies could face a number of challenges, from pressure on margins and regulatory compliance, to the need to invest in further innovation and technology, while the country itself could face major food shortages.
Brexit has also brought about the very pressing issue of mass labor shortage across the UK, particularly in food processing plants. In 2017, an estimated 116,000 EU citizens held positions within the food manufacturing industry, and many of these workers have since fled the UK as they would no longer be eligible to work there. Add to this the soaring international gas prices, and the food industry appears to be barreling towards a full blown state of emergency.
In an effort to avoid a crisis, the UK government has heeded the industry warnings that an additional 140,000 workers would need to be hired by 2024, proceeding with a package of measures that are set to help keep the food processing industry running, and ensure food continues to get to peoples’ plates. The Seasonal Workers Pilot Scheme will allow eligible workers from further afield than the EU - particularly butchers and meat plant workers - to apply for a visa and work in the UK for a period of six months. Many of these seasonal workers are from the Philippines, as the Southeast-Asian country has plenty of trained and skilled butchers who are ready and willing to work in the United Kingdom and plug the gap left in the wake of Brexit.
Filipino butchers and food processing workers will need a UK visa as well as a local work permit, a simple procedure that allows them to only work for the employer who hired them.