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Desert farms feed UK winter produce aisles
Senegal's arid northern regions now supply British supermarkets with millions of cobs of corn, spring onions and green beans each winter, as climate pressures reshape global food trade routes.
From Sahara edge to supermarket shelves
At two large farms near Saint-Louis, close to Senegal's border with Mauritania, workers harvest vegetables under temperatures exceeding 35°C. The produce-packed into refrigerated containers within hours-travels by road to Dakar's port, then by ship to the UK in six days.
British retailers including Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Aldi and Lidl stock Senegalese-grown spring onions, radishes, green beans, chillies, butternut squash and sweetcorn between January and March. The farms, operated by UK firms G's Fresh and Barfoots, employ 9,000 workers, most of them women.
Why Senegal?
Analyst Mike Knowles cites multiple factors behind the shift: intensifying competition for land in southern Europe, frequent droughts in Spain, and growing resistance to air-freighted produce from East Africa. Brexit also reduced the advantages of importing from continental Europe, making Senegal's stability and long-term lease options more attractive.
The farms rely on water diverted from the 1,600km Senegal River, irrigating 2,000 hectares-an area equivalent to 3,000 football pitches. Michael Laurent, the French agronomist who pioneered the project in the early 2000s, recalls the land as barren bush before irrigation transformed it.
Economic trade-offs
Senegal's unemployment rate, hovering around 19%, makes the 9,000 jobs significant, though wages remain low. Agricultural workers earn about 2,500 West African francs ($4.50) daily, with bonuses for exceeding harvest targets. Land rights activist Elhadj "Ardo" Samba Sow, once critical of foreign-owned farms, now acknowledges their role in rural employment.
For UK firms, labour costs in Senegal are a fraction of those in Britain. Derek Wilkinson, managing director of G's Fresh, notes that labour accounts for 60% of UK spring onion production costs, compared with less than a third in Senegal. Even with shipping expenses, he predicts Senegalese imports may soon replace some UK summer crops.
Environmental concerns
Critics question the sustainability of shipping vegetables 3,000 miles. Tim Lang, emeritus professor at City University and originator of the term "food miles," argues that maritime transport still contributes 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions. He advocates aligning diets with seasonal UK production and exploring alternative crops.
"Profit margins are very low, and we need to remain competitive."
Michael Laurent, agronomist and farm developer
Future outlook
With UK food imports at 40% overall-and up to 90% for winter fresh produce-Senegal's role is set to expand. Barfoots' group manager Julian Marks highlights consumer demand for year-round availability as a key driver. The farms' £70 million investment signals long-term commitment, but debates over wages, environmental impact and food security continue.
