Wine maker warns driver shortage will see prices rise

Wine maker warns driver shortage will see prices rise

The makers of Hardys wine have warned that truck driver shortages could hit the festive season and push up costs.

Robert Foye, who heads one of the world’s biggest wine companies in Accolade, said the firm was being hit by external staff shortages around lorry drivers, hitting suppliers, distribution and delivery.

He told the BBC: “These shortages, if they continue, could definitely impact Christmas. We are trying to get ahead of it, but it does depend on the situation for the entire transport and trucking industry in the UK.”

Other companies operating in the UK are having to deal with a shortage of lorry drivers, with firms including Wetherspoons and McDonald’s among those affected.

‘Costs will go up’

Mr Foye added: “The only way we can mitigate this is if we work very closely with our trucking and transport suppliers and our customers. We have done some of that and are managing well so far, but ultimately costs will go up.

“Staff shortages are definitely there and there’s a whole new group of employees that need to be trained, from truck drivers to restaurant staff.”

Australia’s Accolade, the UK’s largest wine firm and the world’s fifth biggest, delivers 35 million cases to 143 countries every year.

Its brands include Hardys, Echo Falls, Kumala, Banrock Station and Stowells.

The Road Haulage Association (RHA) recently said there is a shortage of about 100,000 drivers.

Marc Ostwald, chief economist at ADM ISI, said Western Europe and the US were experiencing similar shortages and that Christmas supply delivery problems are “highly probable”. mainly due to the extensive lockdowns over the past two months in China and much of eastern Asia.

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