A farmer from Lincolnshire has said it is becoming 'increasingly harder' to hire seasonal staff to help on his farm since the Brexit result.
Tim Casey from Coningsby, Lincolnshire told BBC Radio Lincolnshire he can see his business having 'acute problems' in finding workers which will present 'real problems' for the future.
"In about three to five years I can see us starting to have some quite acute problems in finding workers and there are going to be some real problems in what we are able to do."
Negative impacts on the flow of migrant labourers was seen as the pound devalued after the Brexit result with two employment agencies that bring Eastern Europeans to work on British farms saying they failed to fill 600 positions. Miss Capper said the message since the vote to leave is 'they were not welcome here.'
"The agricultural industry has a decades-long history of delivering 98 per cent worker return rates. Seasonal labour is not tied up in the immigration argument and never should be, because people come here to work and go home again," she said.
'Seeing less numbers'
During the Conservative Party conference, the farming industry told the government that it would struggle to survive without seasonal flow of labour from the continent. CLA President Ross Murray said workers from the EU and beyond play a "crucial role" in the rural economy.
"In agriculture alone more than 30,000 permanent workers and an estimated 67,000 seasonal workers overseas help keep our shops and market stalls stocked with UK produce. Farms and other rural businesses need to know that after Brexit there will still be a flexible, skilled and secure workforce so they can plan for the future, invest in their businesses and secure or create jobs."
Deputy of the National Farmers Union Minette Batters told the radio station the lack of workers is a big problem.
She said: "We have already been seeing less numbers actually wanting to come to this country to do the work and that has been exacerbated since the referendum with people feeling that they are not welcome. Also with the exchange rate they are coming here and earning less money, so the problem has been fast tracked and that is why we are asking the government to stretch the net wider and to trial a global visa restricted scheme."
