UK could face shortage of Brussels sprouts, cabbage and broccoli

Now the heat threatens Christmas dinner! Britain could face shortage of Brussels sprouts, cabbage and broccoli due to dry weather

Combination weather and rising costs of production is playing havoc with yields
Farmers have also warned of a shortage of strawberries, potatoes and carrots
Comes as UK in midst of driest eight months from November to June since 1976
Supermarkets rely on Europe if shortages occur, but issues are continent-wide

The UK could face shortages of Brussels sprouts, cabbage and broccoli due to the dry weather as soaring temperatures threaten Christmas dinners.

Farmers have also warned of a shortage of strawberries as a combination of a severe lack of rainfall and rising costs of production plays havoc with yields.

Britain is in the midst of its driest eight months from November to June since 1976, as well as the most arid July on record for parts of southern and eastern England.

The production of potatoes, onions, carrots and lettuce is also understood to be suffering amid warnings that hosepipe bans could be in place until October because there is no ‘meaningful rainfall’ forecast to arrive anytime soon.

British Growers Association chief executive Jack Ward told The I that he has ‘never seen this combination of no rain and super-high temperatures’.

He added: ‘You’re putting very small, very sensitive plants into what is now just parched land that hasn’t seen a drop of rain for weeks and weeks and weeks and trying to keep those plants alive is a real challenge, so at the moment we’re all wondering what proportion of the crops that are being planted for harvest in the winter are even going to survive.’

An aerial view of a farmer carrying out a harvest during a heatwave in Scampton, Lincolnshire on Thursday

Farmers have warned that the UK is facing a shortage of brussels sprouts for Christmas due to the hot weather

The UK may also be short of cabbages amid its driest eight months from November to June since 1976

It comes after parts of parts of southern and eastern England recorded their driest ever July on record

A woman falls asleep in the heat at a park in London on Thursday as

Firefighters attend a wildfire in Rainham, Essex, on Thursday as the period of hot weather and lack of rainfall has increased the risk of blazes

The Met Office said southern England had seen its driest July since records began in 1836

Supermarkets normally rely on receiving supplies from Europe if there are shortages of particular foods in Britain, but the entire continent has been impacted by a lack of rainfall this year.

Head of horticulture and agroforestry at the Soil Association Ben Raskin has also warned of a shortage of salad leaves due to their short roots – meaning they are unable to access water deeper into the ground.

He also said yields for kale and cauliflower are ‘looking pretty rubbish’.

It comes after Tom Bradshaw, deputy president of the National Farmers’ Union, told MailOnline last week that water had become a ‘critical issue’ and that ‘the writing is on the wall’ for some crops.

he added: ‘The impacts of this prolonged spell of dry weather are hugely challenging for many farms across the country and causing concern for all farming sectors. It highlights the urgent need for government and its agencies to better plan for and manage the nation’s water resources.

‘This will help build resilience into the farming sector and provide investment opportunities for irrigation equipment and to build more on-farm reservoirs.’

Mr Bradshaw continued: ‘The lack of rain means crops such as sugar beet and maize are showing signs of stress, while there are challenges for farmers needing to irrigate field veg and potatoes.

‘To help, the Environment Agency has launched measures to support flexible abstraction and this will potentially give some farmers the ability to trade volumes of water with other farmers.

Farming experts said the hot weather has a ‘really severe’ impact on carrot yield this year

Farmers have also said potato yields are likely to be ‘well below average’ amid the dry weather in Britain

The ground starts to crack on a footpath in Windsor Great Park on Thursday due to the continued heat and lack of rainfall

Wheat stubble in a field in Eton on Thursday as the ground becomes tinder dry across the UK amid searing temperatures

A person jogging on a path amongst dead grass in Victoria Park, east London, on Thursday surrounded by scorched ground

‘The dry weather has also severely hampered grass growth which could hit feed supplies for the winter, adding additional costs to livestock farming businesses at a time when costs are continuing to increase significantly.

‘With the forecast predicting more dry weather in the coming weeks, we will continue to monitor for any impacts on UK food production.’

Months of little rainfall, combined with record-breaking temperatures in July, have left rivers at exceptionally low levels, depleted reservoirs and dried-out soils.

All of this has put pressure on the environment, farming and water supplies, and is fuelling wildfires.

Crop fear! Jeremy Clarkson reveals he has to stop harvesting at Diddly Squat farm due to FIRE risk – as sweltering conditions in UK dry up soils and raise risk of wildfires

Lizzie May for MailOnline

Jeremy Clarkson has revealed he has to stop harvesting at his Diddly Squat farm due to the risk of fire as the sweltering conditions in the UK continue to dry up soil and raise the probability of wildfires.

The former Top Gear host, 62, runs his own farm in Chipping Norton, Chadlington, Oxfordshire, and films his escapades for the Amazon Prime show Clarkson’s Farm, but the run of warm weather has left him unable to harvest.

Clarkson took to Twitter to reveal: ‘F**ketty F**k. Had to stop harvesting because of, and I’m not making this up, the fire risk.’

He explained to a fan asking what may cause a fire that anything could lead to devastating consequences: ‘Any damn thing. A bit of litter. A spark from the combine. A fag end. A careless rambler.’

One reply quipped, ‘at least it will make a nice episode plot’, with Jeremy responding that season two had already finished filming on Monday this week.

Today it emerged that a drought could be declared for some parts of England on Friday as 96.8F (36C) temperatures are forecasted from Saturday.

Jeremy Clarkson (pictured) has revealed he has to stop harvesting at his Diddly Squat farm due to the risk of fire as the sweltering conditions in the UK continue to dry up soil and raise the probability of wildfires

The National Drought Group – made up of Government and agency officials, water companies and other groups such as the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) – is set to meet tomorrow to discuss the prolonged dry weather.

There are expectations drought could be declared for some parts of England such as southern and eastern areas, could prompt action by agencies and water companies to manage water resources to ensure supplies and protect the environment after the driest July on record for some areas and the driest first half of the year since 1976.

Four water companies in England and Wales have already brought in hosepipe bans or have signalled their intention to do so, while the Wildlife Trusts have called for an England-wide hosepipe ban to protect nature and rivers.

Clarkson (his farm shop sign is pictured) explained to a fan asking what may cause a fire that anything could lead to devastating consequences: ‘Any damn thing. A bit of litter. A spark from the combine. A fag end. A careless rambler’

Clarkson, pictured with farming contractor Kaleb Cooper who helps Jeremy maintain his land on the Amazon Prime series Clarkson’s Farm, told fans filming finished for season two

The ongoing dry conditions, combined with last month’s record-breaking heatwave, have depleted rivers, reservoirs and aquifers and dried up soils, hitting agriculture, water supplies and wildlife and raising the risk of wildfires.

It comes as fire crews have been battling ferocious wildfires across the capital today amid the sweltering temperatures across the dry, tinderbox conditions – while a ‘substantial fire involving crop’ continues to rage in Leicestershire.

Britain experienced its hottest day on record with temperatures hitting an unprecedented 40.3C (104.5F) in Coningsby on 19 July amidst a scorching heatwave for the UK.

The Met Office raised its Fire Severity Index to exceptional – the highest level – today for much of southern England, and Wales alongside an amber, as the mercury is forecast to climb to ‘lethally hot’ temperatures of 35C (95F) over the weekend.

The warning system also been at its second highest level of alert for seven weeks, which is the longest stretch since 1976.

The heat is likely to affect health, transport and working conditions, meteorologists said, as water companies are being urged to protect essential supplies heading into a ‘likely very dry autumn’.

The 62-year-old now-farmer Clarkson, who also stars with ex-Top Gear hosts Richard Hammond and James May in The Grand Tour on Amazon Prime, came under fire last month for suggesting that Britain is overreacting to the heatwave across the country.

Trains were cancelled, hospital appointments were axed and schools closed amid warnings from the Met Office that even healthy people could die.

Firefighters put out a grass fire at Hollow Ponds in Leytonstone, East London on Thursday afternoon as parts of the UK have become a tinder box due to the extreme hot weather

Firefighter battles a wall of flames as he and his crew attempt to put out a grass fire at Hollow Ponds in Leytonstone, East London on Thursday

A man is pictured walking on a path amongst dead grass in Victoria Park, east London. The Met Office has issued an amber heat warning running between Thursday and Sunday, which could see temperatures peak at 36C across southern England and eastern Wales

Pictured: A view from the runway of Gatwick Airport sees smoke billowing in the distance from a suspected wildfire from the Crawley area earlier today. The heat and constant dry weather in the south west has risen concerns about serious drought and wildfires

Jeremy, 62, seemed to think that the reaction was over the top, and tweeted to his 7.7 million followers: ‘It’s very hot in the south of France but so far as I know, there’s no DefCon 8 level 3 killer death heatwave warning in place.’

It attracted a lot of backlash from people who pointed out that Jeremy was incorrect, as much of western France experienced up to 111F (44C) near Bordeaux in what forecasters branded a ‘heat apocalypse’.

The extreme conditions sparked dozens of fires, with crews left battling a ‘monster’ blaze in Gironde which forced 16,000 people to evacuate and torched 14,000 acres within a week.

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