MIGRANT LABOUR plays an 'integral' role in many Scottish farming businesses – so the UK's post-Brexit immigration system must include an effective Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme or "crops will go unharvested".

This was the key message to emerge from last week's meeting between the National Farmers Union Scotland and UK government ministers Robin Walker, from the Department for Exiting the EU, and Dr Ian Duncan, of the Scotland Office.

Held on Ian Brown's Easter Grangemuir Farm, which supplies brassicas and strawberries as part of East of Scotland Growers, the meeting brought the ministers face to face with Mr Brown himself, East of Scotland Growers' managing director Andrew Faichney and chairman John Wilson, NFUS president Andrew McCornick and political affairs manager Clare Slipper.

These industry spokesmen reported that they had already witnessed a drop in the numbers of EU workers coming to work on Scottish farms this season, due to both the drop in the value of their wages and EU nationals simply "not feeling welcome" in the UK.

Mr McCornick said: “It is always welcome to see government ministers visiting farms to hear first-hand about the challenges facing producers and I am pleased that Mr Walker and Dr Duncan were in listening mode at the meeting.

“There is not a single fruit farm in Scotland that could operate without access to overseas workers and there are many other agricultural businesses which rely on such employees. It is estimated that there are between 5000 and 15,000 seasonal workers employed within the Scottish agricultural sector at any one time," said Mr McCornick. “Without this supply of labour, crops are likely to be left unharvested and wasted."

If that happened, more food would have to be imported, driving up food prices, he warned, while depending on the post-Brexit trade agreements, this may make certain sectors less competitive on world markets, or make businesses unviable, resulting in challenges to UK production and domestic food security.

“This is hugely concerning and damaging to the confidence of Scottish producers, and NFUS is calling upon UK Government to give reassurance to EU nationals who are needed and valued within agriculture and local economies."

NFUS pledged to make strong representations to the Migration Advisory Committee recently appointed by the Home Office to this effect: "We also discussed how a future environmental and rural policy might support further innovation and efficiency in the sector post-Brexit," said Mr McCornick.

"We have invited similar discussions with Mr Walker’s counterparts in the Scottish Government and hope to shortly begin a substantive dialogue on how the different sectors of Scottish agriculture can be allowed to flourish in the post-Brexit landscape.”