Eat parsnips and leeks to offset veg shortage, says senior Tory

BRITONS should be eating parsnips and leeks at this time of year, a senior Tory MP insisted today, as supermarkets continued to struggle with a shortage of fruit and vegetables.

- Rachael Burford

Sir Robert Goodwill, chairman of the environment, food and rural affairs committee, suggested households should return to eating seasonal produce and embrace the “traditional skill” of growing it at home. It follows Environment Secretary Therese Coffey yesterday proposing that turnips could be a suitable alternative while many shops limit sales of cucumbers and tomatoes following shortages, partly caused by extreme weather in Spain and north Africa. Sir Robert told BBC Radio 4: “We don’t have that seasonality that we used to have. And certainly if people are on a limited budget, you know home-grown produce in season is very cost-effective.