I am delighted to report that I have received my second jab and that I am now fully vaccinated. This means that I am among the almost 50% of the population that are fully vaccinated. The vaccination roll-out programme is steadily marching on.

Despite this, it seems that we will have to wait that bit longer before we can avail of indoor dining in pubs and restaurants. These were due to open today (5th July) but were dealt a major blow when the opening date was deferred with no date set for reopening. Many restaurant owners are at breaking point, both financially and mentally and this delay is not helping them. It is hard to imagine that some pubs that don’t have the space to serve food or drink outside have been shut for almost 16 months.

I hope I am right in saying that our industry seems to be doing pretty well at this stage of the pandemic, when you consider other industries such as hospitality, aviation and certain tourist sectors. However, there is one thing that confuses me. If hotels are allowed to be open and serve food indoors to their guests why can’t restaurants do the same? Is the virus able to distinguish between a hotel and a restaurant? 

At this moment in time, the final stage of easing lockdown restrictions in the UK will happen on the 19th of July. This should allow BIGGA’s Festival of Turf, which is due to take place at the Warwickshire Event Centre on the 21st and 22nd of July, to go ahead. However, the event is only two days after the lockdown restrictions are over. Should things take a change for the worse this could jeopardise the Festival. They say that a week is a long time in politics. The same could be said for a pandemic. The organisers will be keeping their fingers and toes crossed that the Festival of Turf will go ahead as planned. Let’s hope so. I will be curious to know how many people from Ireland will be travelling as travel restrictions are due to be eased on the 19th of July as well.

Back here in Ireland, the FTMTA have announced that the Farm Machinery Show will take place from February the 3rd - 5th, 2022 at Punchestown Racecourse. The last time this biannual event was held was in 2019. News of the exact plans for the FTMTA event 2022 will be revealed over the coming months as restrictions relating to the Covid-19 pandemic ease.

Another area of concern for our industry is the sharp rise in energy and commodity prices such as copper, aluminium, platinum and rubber. The prices of all products derived from petroleum chemistry are also rising. Non-ferrous metals such as aluminium and copper are also greatly affected by this general price increase. Since April 2020, the price of aluminium has increased by 50%. These raw materials are essential for producing agricultural equipment and will put pressure on machinery prices. Add to this the shortage of ships and containers being available. The prices per container tripled over the last few months from $2,500 to $7,500. This also leads to additional costs and delays to import parts and accessories from Asia into Europe