Bumper British strawberry crop may rot as EU pickers stay away

The fallout from Brexit, which has left many eastern European workers feeling that they are more welcome in other European member states, is also a concern. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs recently provided them with brochures in Romanian and Bulgarian declaring that the UK is open to foreign workers. But an expanding Romanian economy has seen fewer workers leave their home. A sizable drop in the number of workers returning year on year has also become apparent in figures collated by the NFU. “Workers from Romania are no longer earning six times what they would back home,” Maurel said. “It’s more like three and a half times. That makes a difference.” It is predicted that apple growers will be worse hit by the labour shortage than berry growers as they will need fruit pickers in the late autumn, when many Romanians choose to return home having earned the maximum they can make before paying tax.