Up to 800 foreign butchers granted visas, government confirms

The government has confirmed up to 800 butchers will be allowed to travel to the UK on temporary visas to work in abattoirs and so help ease the backlog of pigs on farm.

The U-turn follows intense pressure from the pig sector, with humane culling under way due to chronic labour shortages in processing plants.

See also: NPA optimistic visas will be granted to foreign butchers

Defra also announced that meat processors in England will be able to store slaughtered pigs for up to six months under a private storage aid scheme, to stop them being wasted.

Extending working hours and processing animals on Saturdays could also be introduced to increase throughput.

Meeting

The relief measures have arrived after the National Pig Association (NPA) and pork processors met with the government’s supply chain adviser, former Tesco boss Sir Dave Lewis, earlier this week to again outline the severity of the situation.

Until 31 December, up to 800 pork butchers will be eligible to apply for visas from the existing allocation in the Seasonal Workers Pilot Scheme, allowing them to travel and work in the UK for a period of six months.

The freezer storage scheme for England will be funded by Defra, and ministers said more information would be published shortly.

The NPA said it was relieved the government had intervened after reports that crowded farms have received as little as 70p/kg for “distress loads” of overweight pigs.

The NPA said in a statement: “We are working with the processors to understand the effect of these new measures and to determine exactly what will happen now, and how quickly, so that we can give pig farmers some hope and stem the flow of healthy pigs currently having to be culled on farms.”

Resistance

The government had resisted introducing temporary visas to help solve the labour shortages, and Boris Johnson was ridiculed for his response to the pig crisis in media interviews.

Ministers maintain that the visas are not a long-term solution and the government said it expects the pork sector to “encourage better training offers, career options and wage increases”.

Defra secretary George Eustice added: “A unique range of pressures on the pig sector over recent months, such as the effects of the pandemic and its impact on export markets have led to the temporary package of measures we are announcing today.

“This is the result of close working with industry to understand how we can support them through this challenging time.”

NFU vice-president Tom Bradshaw urged the government to get the scheme up and running as soon as possible, to ease the backlog of pigs on farms.

“Labour shortages across the food supply chain remain acute, and continued engagement with government is essential to solve these wider issues,” he said.

“The food supply chain remains united in its view that a temporary 12-month Covid recovery visa is needed to enable the entire food and drink sector to recruit for essential roles, alongside an urgent announcement on the extension of the Seasonal Workers Pilot scheme.”

In further efforts to fix the country’s supply chain issues, the government wants to change HGV delivery rules which would mean foreign transport operators could make unlimited journeys for two weeks before returning home.