Carrot farmer Rodger Hobson says the same wet weather delayed this year’s carrot planting season. Last year, the weather was so bad that supermarkets had to import carrots. This year, they’ve gone up by 13.4% to 69p per kilo.
But Mr Hobson says he would not be surprised if “when it comes to Christmas week they’ll be down to 20p a kilo”.
This is because carrots are often chosen as “loss leaders” in supermarkets. They’re sold at a loss to attract customers in to spend on more profitable items.
Ged Futter is a retail specialist who used to be a buyer for Asda. He says supermarkets drastically reduce their prices in the week before Christmas.
“Every year they do the same thing,” he says, noting that supermarkets usually fight for customers with cut price “potatoes, carrots, parsnips, Brussels spouts”.
Mr Hobson says perishable items make for good loss leaders because customers can’t stockpile them when they are cheap. If supermarkets reduced the price of long-life items like baked beans, shoppers might be tempted to buy their year’s supply in December, he says.
While loss-leaders are good for shoppers, Mr Futter stressed these below-cost prices “don’t show the true cost to the farmer” and can generate a lot of food waste.
“People think that food is cheap to produce – that’s not true.”
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