One industry insider view is that come this summer the "ass will be kicked out of it".
The it here is the mushroom industry in Ireland.
Reasons being that the straw shortage will be showing up big time by the start of the summer.
There are predicted to be shortages this summer, and no capacity within the Irish industry to plug the supply gap.
The follow on from that scenario entails more growers (are there any left Stalker hears you cry) going to the wall.
Other growers are bailing before any summer shocks, no longer getting the prices for produce, no longer finding the tough going worth it. Stalker has heard of another big order being lost by another local company any such loss doesn’t bode well. Where does the order then go to is the question.
Out on the road these days, the lamentable refrains that assail the ears are; where can we get the labour? How can I get good prices for the mushrooms? When am I going to get the compost? It's all very depressing.
However, eventually the core of the industry will be left, as little as fifty or so growers, producing the same amounts as before when the satellite style industry was in place.
