Coronavirus: ‘Call to arms’ to safeguard Northern Ireland’s food production

Denis Lynn of Finnebrogue has called on the government to relax the self-isolation rules for food production workers to avoid the imminent risk of serious supply disruption.

Mr Lynn has suggested that the large number of hospitality workers being laid off could be mobilised to man depleted food production lines.

The Finnebrogue chairman said: “It is vital the government steps in immediately to make food manufacturing a protected industry to ensure we are able to feed the people of Britain during this crisis.

“We are currently meeting the increased supermarket demand brought about by millions of people now eating all three meals a day in the home, but we are facing an imminent labour shortage that will grind production lines to a halt unless radical action is taken quickly.

“The prime minister’s announcement that anyone who lives with someone suffering coronavirus symptoms should self-isolate for 14 days is a welcome measure that the experts say will help delay the spread of this virus. But without further action to support the vital food production industry, it threatens to wreak havoc on our capacity to make the food the country needs.

“Nobody supports stringent and strict isolation measures more than me. They are long overdue. But the government should not enforce these rules for all food production workers – or serious food shortages will become a very grave reality.”

Mr Lynn said he was “issuing a call to arms” to all hospitality workers recently made redundant, and added: “We will need you to plug the gaps that are already appearing on our production lines. We need you to help us feed the nation.

“The government must help facilitate this process. It must also announce a package of economic measures that will enable successful food businesses like ours to carry out a vital national service in these difficult times – while supporting the many hundreds and thousands of food operatives who will be off work and for whom long-term statutory sick pay will cause very real economic hardship.”