Food colonialism

"Jimmy Davies, general manager of Hops Labour Solutions, which supplies seasonal workers to farms throughout the UK, says workers from Poland, Latvia and Lithuania are no longer interested in harvesting work. "Wages have gone through the roof in Poland so there is less need to come over here," he says. "On top of that other EU countries like Holland have opened their borders, so not only are they less interested in agricultural work full stop, the number of workers is being spread out more thinly over a wider area."

Experts say consumers are unlikely to face exorbitantly priced strawberries as a result of shortages as supermarkets dictate the price of crops, not producers. Tennis fans will still enjoy the annual Wimbledon ritual of strawberries and cream. But Mr Davies says that if the labour situation does not improve, consumers can expect a greater percentage of imported soft fruit from the US, Israel and Mexico on shelves and fewer British farmers in business."

This is a trend that is being repeated esewhere in Europe: fewer people want to work in agriculture, fewer non-Europeans allowed in, Europeans having access to jobs much less tiresome than farm labour. The lack of labour might just finish European farming off, regardless of all the subsidies thay offer. The demand from farm products from the Developing World will definitely increase, but beware of export farming: it always happens at the expense of the poor and of the land. Moreover, Developing Countriess are likely to export raw material, like strawberries, and they will probably get paid in...jelly donuts. This is colonialism all over again, but without the need to physically occupy a country and be responsible for its population. Local or regional private capital will serve as a proxy for the colonizers, and Free Trade Agreements will ensure no money goes to the State from these transactions. The result: richer individuals, but weaker states. And more poor.