Ms Christine Tacon:

No, not unless the farmer is in horticulture. Very many farmers who are in horticulture are the direct suppliers. I do not know enough about Ireland but in the UK those direct suppliers, the primary producers in horticulture, are getting bigger and bigger. There has been a reduction in the number of middlemen. More and more growers are getting bigger and acting as middlemen for other growers vis-à-visthe retailers. Often they are growing in three or four countries around the world to maintain year-round supply. They have very good, close working relationships with the retailers and the retailers have long term contracts with them and are investing in those businesses. Those businesses have much better and much closer relationships. At the other extreme, I have seen retailers falling over themselves trying to work with small suppliers to get niche, original products onto their shelves to differentiate themselves from the retailer next door. I see a huge interest in those producers who have innovative products. However, as we both know, such products do not tend to be primary producer products but added value products like energy bars and so forth. Retailers are desperate for innovation, for products that make them different from their competitors. They are working much more closely with fruit and vegetable suppliers and growers. That may well be an impact of Brexit or it may just be maturity in the sector.