AIMS March Inflation Report – The calm before the storm?

AIMS March Inflation Report – The calm before the storm?

In the chancellor’s Middle East: Economic Update in the House of Commons last week she said that meetings with supermarkets and banks would be held to “discuss how they can further support their customers”.

The AIMS meat and poultry inflation report for March shows that for the second month running prices have fallen in price across the four supermarket fixtures surveyed.

“Whilst the average price of pork rose by 0.7%, beef (-1.64%) and Lamb (-0.92%) both contributed to an overall 0.89% fall across the month” said Tony Goodger, Head of Communications at AIMS.

“With chicken unchanged at an average £4.63kg the month has provided the price stability which consumers and government have been wanting to see in shopping baskets after 2025’s large increases.”, Tony continued.

“Across the last twelve months prices for beef, lamb, pork, and chicken have risen by 7.95% driven by all cuts within the beef fixture. (+15.81%) whilst pork and chicken, both of which are seen as proteins consumers have switched to during fast paced food inflation, have by and large maintained near price parity”.

“With the war in the Middle East now starting to impact the four F’s of farming (feed, fertilizer, fuel and finance) costs of production and processing will increase whilst inventories in the supply chain reduce”, said Tony.

“My reading of the situation is that the sudden and steep price increases in fuel, feed and fertilizer will move along the supply chain and will inevitably have to be passed onto the consumer.”

The government’s recent Land Use Framework has identified the need to drive “productivity improvements” and “the expansion of highly efficient sectors” and has also acknowledged that the poultry sector has the “potential to increase domestic production quickly”.

“Given the severity of the conflict in the Middle East I believe that it is now essential that planning applications for efficient poultry and egg production be immediately passed as permitted development and as a signal that government is being truthful when it says that “food security is national security”.

Planning for the future: England’s first Land Use Framework  – Environment

The first meeting of the Farming and Food Partnership Board – The Farming Blog