Lynx Purchasing published its Spring/Summer edition of its Market Forecast warning that  the problems caused by fresh produce shortages and price increases are likely to last until well into the spring.

Rachel Dobson, Lynx Purchasing managing director, said: "The immediate issues with salad produce are now well understood, in terms of the impact of bad weather in southern Europe, and the unwillingness of UK growers to pay to heat glasshouses without support on energy costs.

"The current availability issue is hopefully a relatively short-term challenge, but new crops can't be grown overnight, so it is likely to be a significant issue for the next few months. Our advice is that hospitality operators should plan for both potential shortages of supplies of the produce affected, as well for further cost increases.

"In the longer term, we believe the trade-off for a more secure supply chain may have to include operators paying UK farmers and food producers a sustainable price that not only covers the true cost of production, but also enables them to continue to invest in their business."

The Lynx Purchasing Market Forecast combines official inflation data with exclusive insight from the range of specialist hospitality suppliers Lynx works with, providing detailed information on pricing trends over the crucial coming months.

The latest report highlighted product shortages for beef & lamb, pork, salmon and potatoes. A free copy of the Spring/Summer 2023 Market Forecast can be downloaded from the website at www.lynxpurchasing.co.uk.