Britons to face even HIGHER food bills due to spiralling gas prices
Britons set to face even HIGHER food bills as spiralling gas prices push farmers’ fertiliser costs to £2billion over next two years
- Farmers face additional £1.1billion over next two years due to rising gas bills
- Fertiliser bills were around £760million for Britain’s farmers this year and last
- Gas is a key ingredient in fertilisers, hence why price of food will be inflated
- Prices have soared for several reasons, including the war in Ukraine
- MailOnline analysis shows an average 20 item shopping basket already costs £5.20 more than it did last year
Britons are set to endure further financial misery and face even higher food prices as spiralling gas bills are likely to push up farmers’ fertiliser costs up by almost £2billion over the next two years.
Gas is an essential ingredient in many fertilisers that are used to boost crop soil fertility and experts fear that surging bills are likely to be detrimental to the cost of food.
Fertiliser bills were up by around £760million for Britain’s farmers this year and last due to the rocketing price of gas.
But if gas markets continue to spiral out of control, farmers may be forced to cough up an additional £1.1billion in 2022 and 2023.
Taking into account the past two years as well, farmers are predicted to spend £2billion in additional costs over the four years.
Analysis from the Energy and Climate Change Intelligence Unit (ECIU), shared with MailOnline, highlighted the pressure that farmers are facing.
The growers are not just dealing with fertiliser costs. The price of gas has naturally pushed up their energy bills as well, and the heatwaves experienced over the country might have cut some harvests in half.
Matt Williams, climate and land programme lead at the ECIU, said: ‘Farmers are being hit by high fertiliser bills, high energy costs and now a drought.
Britons face even higher food prices as spiralling gas bills are likely to push up farmers’ fertiliser costs up by almost £2billion over the next two years
The price of gas has naturally pushed up farmers’ bills and the heatwaves experienced over the country might have cut some harvests in half. (File image of tractor spreading muck before growing crops)
‘At the base of all of these is gas which is destabilising UK food security and our climate.
‘This triple whammy could push food bills even higher than they already are.’
Rising food prices is the last thing that households need, with inflation set to peak at above 13% this autumn, according to forecasts from the Bank of England.
This is largely driven by the price of gas, which has soared for several reasons, including Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Analysis by MailOnline this week revealed that a four-pint milk carton now costs, on average, 34p more than it did 12 months ago.
The cost of an average 500g pack of own-brand spaghetti has also rocketed up by 33p – from 52p to 85p – since August last year, while a 500g pack of Lurpak is now 63p more expensive – up from £3.58 last year to £4.21 this year.
In fact, an average 20 item shopping basket already costs £5.20 more than it did last year – with shoppers at Tesco and Morrisons seeing some of the biggest rises.
Millions of Britons are already facing an uncertain period after energy regulator Ofgem announced its price cap would increase by 80 per cent to £3,549 per year in October.
But bills are predicted to rise to £5,400 in January and even further to £6,600 in spring according to forecasts from energy analysts Cornwall Insight.
With Britons already facing a double whammy of high fuel and rising energy prices, analysis by MailOnline has revealed how a four-pint milk carton now costs, on average, 34p more than it did 12 months ago. The cost of an average 500g pack of own-brand spaghetti has also rocketed up by 33p – from 52p to 85p – since August last year, while a 500g pack of Lurpak is now 63p more expensive – up from £3.58 last year to £4.21 this year
Analysis by MailOnline showed that an average 20 item shopping basket already costs £5.20 more than it did last year – with shoppers in Tesco and Morrisons seeing some of the biggest rises
The Ofgem price cap will rise from £1,971 now to £3,549 from October 2022. And experts now fear food prices will also rise due to the cost of fertiliser as a result of inflated gas prices
Consumer champion Martin Lewis also warned that Britons could die this winter due to the latest rise in the cap which he says could see some people pay up to £10,000 a year in bills.
ECIU’s Mr Williams did however mention that there are ‘innovative British solutions’ for non-gas based fertilisers which also have the benefit of being better for the environment.
‘Expanding renewables on farms will also help bring down costs and make farmers’ revenues more resilient,’ he said.
Meanwhile the UK director of N2 Applied, a low-carbon fertiliser company, has called on the government to work with the industry to move away from fossil fuel fertilisers.
‘The sky-high price of chemical fertiliser this year is a tipping point – it has shown us that this cannot be where the future lies for UK food production,’ he said.
‘We can no longer be so reliant on chemical fertilisers produced around the world and must instead find sustainable alternatives that farmers have greater control over.’
How the cost of everyday items has risen in the last 12 months
Milk – 4 pints (own brand)
Average price in August last year: £1.16
Average price in August this year: £1.50
Difference: £0.34
Spaghetti – 500g (own brand)
Average price in August last year: £0.52
Average price in August this year: £0.85
Difference: £0.32
Heinz beans – Six pack
Average price in August last year: £3.50
Average price in August this year: £4.77
Difference: £1.27
Lurpak – 500g
Average price in August last year: £3.58
Average price in August this year: £4.21
Difference: £0.63
*Figures are an average based on prices from the UK’s major supermarkets, using data from the Trolley.co.uk Grocery Price Index
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