CHRISTMAS POULTRY SUPPLY WARNING
THE owner of Devon-based poultry factory 2 Sisters warned “Christmas will be cancelled” due to the impact on the meat trade of a CO2 supply crisis and staffing shortages.
Ranjit Singh Boparan, the owner of Bernard Matthews and 2 Sisters Food Group, says disrupted CO2 supplies combined with a shortage of workers would affect the supply of meat such as turkeys.
However, Prime Minister Boris Johnson yesterday reassured people “Christmas is on”, as a deal was struck with a major firm to restart CO2 supplies in the coming days.
The gas CO2 is used in food packaging and as a method of stunning animals prior to slaughter, but supplies are running low.
Spiralling energy costs have led to the suspension of operations at fertiliser plants which produce CO2 as a byproduct, having a knock-on effect on the food industry. CO2 is injected into the packaging of perishable foods such as meat and salads to inhibit the growth of bacteria. It typically prolongs the shelf life of products, such as beef steak, by around five days.
The shortage has been caused by two large factories in the UK stopping work because of soaring wholesale gas prices. Remaining UK production is being prioritised for medical procedures.
It comes as supply chains are already grappling with a shortage of HGV delivery drivers, heaping yet more pressure on UK supermarkets’ “just in time” model.
Mr Boparan, whose 2 Sisters meat processing plant in Willand employs around 1,000 people, said: “There are less than 100 days left until Christmas and Bernard Matthews and my other poultry businesses are working harder than ever before to try and recruit people to maintain food supplies.
“Nothing has fundamentally changed since I spoke about this issue in July. In fact, I take no pleasure in pointing out that the gaps on the shelves I warned about then are getting bigger by the day.
“The supply of Bernard Matthews turkeys this Christmas was already compromised as I need to find 1,000 extra workers to process supplies. Now with no CO2 supply, Christmas will be cancelled.
“The CO2 issue is a massive body blow and puts us at breaking point, it really does – that’s poultry, beef, pork, as well as the wider food industry.”
The company 2 Sisters has a number of sites across England and processes about six million chickens every week, one million of those from Devon.
Ian Wright, the chief executive of the Food and Drink Federation, said consumers could start noticing shortages in poultry, pork and bakery products within days if the CO2 issue wasn’t resolved. “It is a real crisis,” he said.
The Government is now reported to have struck a deal with the UK’s largest CO2 producer CF Industries to restart production at its UK sites in an effort to ensure availability of carbon dioxide for the food sector. News of the deal followed talks between the company and Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng.
It is not clear yet what incentives the government have offered the firm.
It could take as long as three days to start producing CO2 again at its plants.