THERE HAS been an 83% increase in online applications for farming jobs over the last month.

With predictions that up to a million people could lose their jobs due to the current lockdown – while farm businesses struggle to fill the gap left by absent overseas labour – record numbers of people in the UK have reportedly been hunting for employment in agriculture.

According to the latest figures from online recruitment platform Totaljobs, more than four million people took to its website to look for new opportunities in March alone. Searches for roles such as ‘fruit picker’ and ‘farm worker’ were up by as much as 338%.

Speaking from Totaljobs, Steve Warnham said: “The UK farming sector has historically suffered from a shortage of seasonal workers, which has only been further exacerbated by recent tightening of immigration rules and the unavailability of staff due to border closures. However, under these extraordinary circumstances, we are seeing a growing trend of workers who have been temporarily displaced due to Covid-19 who are now looking for roles they can take on in other sectors to keep Britain moving.

“The increased interest in farming and agricultural role reflects a wider trend that we are seeing across other essential industries including logistics, healthcare and security.”

Country Land and Business Association president Mark Bridgeman added: “Tens of thousands of people are coming forward to help farmers feed the nation. This is wonderful news and shows a tremendous ‘can do’ attitude at these difficult times. Make no mistake, we still need many more to do the same.

“We all know this is a deeply concerning period and we are all determined to do all we can to help the country through it," said Mr Bridgeman. "In order to do so, we must recognise that farmers supply of labour is in jeopardy. A shortage of 80,000 workers is something we have never seen before. This is why we are calling for a ‘Land Army’ of workers to support farmers in feeding the country."

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