Fears of pumpkin shortages across the UK as farmers say weather has impact on harvest

Halloween lovers might be in for a real scare as farmers fear there might be a pumpkin shortage across the UK in time for the autumn festivities.

Poor weather is said to have ruined about one third of the pumpkin harvest in Britain this year.

The warm weather has caused the orange fruit, most commonly used for Jack-o-lanterns in Britain, to ripen way earlier than usual, which has had an impact on the quality.

The shortage might also lead to higher prices on this year’s harvest.

Guy French, a pumpkin farmer in Basildon, Essex, told The Mirror: “We are selling at a higher price, but the main factor for that is our input costs.

“We always say to customers, if you think the price of filling up your car with diesel has doubled, think of what it does for a tractor. And then our fertiliser costs are also up because of the war in Ukraine.

“The quality of the pumpkin is good - the skin finish is good, they’re a really good orange. But the drought had a knock-on impact on yield. You just haven’t got the volume there.”

A lot of farms have already sold out their crops, and have been swamped by preorders, which Mr. French says is “unusual”.

In an interview with ITV East Anglia, pumpkin farmer William Tyrrell from Lincolnshire said: "The heatwave has limited the yield and made them ripen early,

"You can put these pumpkins into controlled storage to hold them until October but if we were to harvest them it ruins the experience for the public coming to pick their own."