The Hungry Gap

For us at Sandy Lane Farm, this means that while we’re still harvesting leeks and the last of our cabbages, and our salad crops are gradually coming through, we’re reaching the end of our stored roots, with beetroot being one of the last remaining from last season. Even though we are continuously planting, the reality is that without long, warm, sunny days, growth remains slow. Larger farms that specialise in wholesale often have extensive storage facilities to keep root veg like carrots and potatoes well into the spring, allowing them to bridge this period more easily. As a 100-acre organic farm with a focus on variety rather than scale, we don’t have that same infrastructure, which means we feel the effects of the Hungry Gap more acutely.

To keep the veg boxes as full and varied as possible, we supplement our own produce with vegetables from other organic farms in the UK and occasionally from the EU. This ensures that, even as our fields wait for the warmer months to catch up, we can still provide a balanced selection of fresh, high-quality produce. However, the impact of recent unpredictable weather patterns has made this even more challenging. The past few years have seen extreme conditions, from prolonged wet spells to unexpected frosts, which have disrupted planting and harvest cycles across the country. In 2024, for example, England recorded one of its worst harvests on record due to relentless rain, affecting everything from cereals to field vegetables. With climate variability becoming the norm, these seasonal challenges are only becoming more pronounced.