British Berry Industry Future Under Threat — Despite UK Sector Hitting Record Milestones

British berry growers are warning of a tough year ahead, as rising energy costs and wage increases continue to create challenging circumstances for fruit farmers in 2025. A lack of fair retailer returns has also been cited by growers as a continuing issue, threatening the future success of the sector.

It comes despite the British berry market reaching a total market value of more than $2 billion for the first time, according to British Berry Growers, the industry body representing 95% of British berries sold in the U.K.

The industry’s growth has been largely fueled by rising consumer demand, with berry sales volumes increasing by 4.3% in the past year alone, and market penetration (the percentage of consumers buying berries) now reaching 85.3%, according to Kantar sales data.

We are immensely proud of reaching this milestone, and of the industry’s resilience in the face of challenging operating conditions, but it is also clear that there are tangible risks that threaten the industry’s future. In particular, it’s clear that retailers have a significant role to play in the industry’s recovery. Without their support, growers will struggle to expand production and meet the ever-growing demand for fresh British berries. This would be a tragedy when the ongoing growth of the overall retail market gives a huge opportunity to increase U.K. home production and self-sufficiency.

This historic milestone marks nearly a decade of consistent market growth, which has seen the sector double in value since 2015, when the market first reached $1 billion, according to Kantar sales data.

Retailers, policymakers, and industry stakeholders must come together to support British berry growers.

In the last year, the average year-round price of berries has increased significantly by 6.9% according to Kantar, which has driven a significant portion of the industry’s value growth.

The berry market value milestone comes as a new EY report, commissioned by British Berry Growers, found the British berry industry is having an outsized effect on the U.K. economy. In 2023, the industry added an enormous $624 million to the economy, as well as contributing $134 million in taxes, and supporting 16,317 FTE jobs.

However, despite reaching this $2 billion milestone, the future success of the U.K. production industry is by no means secure, with conditions for growers becoming increasingly challenging.

According to the EY report, the rate at which the industry has grown has significantly decelerated in recent years, with the Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) in the volume of berry sales dropping from 7.8% between 2012 and 2019, to just 1.3% between 2019 and 2023.

Reasons for this declining growth are primarily centered around the rise in the costs of production, such as rising energy costs and increases in the national minimum and living wage rates — the National Living Wage rose by 59% between 2016 and 2024. This is having an outsized impact on the labor-dependent industry.

In fact, 71% of growers surveyed in the EY report experienced operating cost increases in excess of 20% between 2020 and 2023. For the vast majority — 85% of growers — revenue returns did not keep pace with the operating cost increases.

Unfortunately, for British berry growers, the industry’s recovery is not being sufficiently supported by fair retailer returns. Though the average retail price of berries rose by 14.5% between 2020 and 2023, the average price paid to growers by retailers only increased by 11.2% in the same period — by no means enough to help cover non-wage operating cost increases of 37% on average.

British growers are also competing with more berries being imported from other markets. Despite the overall market growth for British and imported berries in the U.K., the share of British berries has shrunk by 2.54%, while the volume of imported berries increased by 15.11%.

As we start 2025, it is clear that collaborative action is essential to ensure the survival and continued growth of the British berry industry.

Retailers, policymakers, and industry stakeholders must come together to support British growers, through more equitable pricing and extended access to a seasonal workforce, to ensure the future of one of the U.K.’s most important agricultural sectors.

Nick Marston is chairman of the British Berry Growers, the industry body for the British berry industry. Its members supply over 95% of the berries (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries) in U.K. supermarkets. British Berry Growers directs world-leading berry research, represents the interests of berry growers to the government and funds “Love Fresh Berries,” a year-round consumer campaign that celebrates the taste, health and value of British berries.

The methodology underpinning the analysis of British Berry Growers involved a multifaceted approach, beginning with an in-depth survey of member growers to gather the necessary quantitative data for the Economic Impact Assessment and strategic assessment. The survey was complemented by a series of one-to-one consultations with producers of varying size and region, focusing on production costs, labor, environmental contributions, technological impacts and supply chain dynamics.