U.K. Relies on Its Most-at-Risk to Put Food on the Table

(Bloomberg) -- Concerns about a shortage of workers to harvest food in the U.K. could be exacerbated by the demographic composition of the industry. One-in-10 jobs in crop and animal production is held by a worker over the age of 70 -- a group that the government has identified as at increased risk of sever illness from the coronavirus and advised to be particularly stringent about social distancing measures such as staying home. That’s the highest proportion of any industry, underscoring Britain’s reliance on at-risk older workers to keep produce on supermarket shelves.

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