The boss of Britain’s best-known steakhouse has warned that British farmers do not believe in “honor and profit” when it comes to agriculture.
Will Beckett said that the UK is facing a “massive” problem because too many farmers are leaving the industry.
Mr Beckett stated: “I believe it is right to say Britain has a problem with farming.” We have a huge problem if there’s no honor and profit in agriculture – that’s false – if the farmers don’t feel they can make money or enjoy farming, then we have a big problem.
After years of frustration among farmers who were forced to deal with the post-Brexit labour shortages, EU redtape and rising fertiliser and energy prices due to the invasion of Ukraine, his comments are a welcome relief. Also, there have been allegations that the major supermarket chains have squeezed margins to levels.
National Farmers Unions, along with other industry groups, wrote to all political leaders before the election last month to urge them to develop a food security plan. They warned: “It is foolish to assume that shocks will never affect our food system.”
Mr Beckett stated: “We are not even close to being self-sufficient in food. We import an enormous amount. It’s still the government’s priority to increase self-sufficiency. For that to happen, agriculture has to be successful. There are areas of agriculture where this is clearly not the case.
Hawksmoor has 13 restaurants in the UK, Dublin and New York. All the beef sold in Britain is British. The restaurant is consistently ranked as one of the best in the world.
Mr Beckett continued: “There are many farmers, including us, who are simply trying to find other routes to market, because they know that they will be paid a fair price for their product.”
He said that the recent trend of going vegan is largely “hype” or “noise”, and that some practices could be harmful to agriculture.
Mr Beckett stated: “It encourages or engenders a monocrop approach to land husbandry, which I do not think is very healthy.
“[Farmers] won’t only think about cows; they’ll spend money on building reservoirs to attract insects, so that more birds can come. Guess what if you are doing soybean monocrops? “The land is not good, wildlife and insects disappear, and soil health drops.”
According to reports, Hawksmoor has been considering a possible sale at a price of up to £100m. In a document sent to investors, it was stated that the chain’s annual turnover has now topped £100m. Graphite, a private equity firm, currently owns the majority of the chain.
Huw Gott, a business partner of Mr Beckett and the son Fiona Beckett, a prominent wine journalist who founded the chain with him in 2006, was also involved. According to reports, both founders will retain their shares and continue to lead the company in the event that Hawksmoor is sold.
Hawksmoor has been credited as one of the few restaurants that have revived the traditional British steakhouse over the past decade.
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