By John CampbellThe Northern Ireland mushroom industry will disappear unless migration rules are relaxed, an industry body has warned.
Post-Brexit migration rules mean that it is now very difficult for people from the EU to migrate to the UK to take up low-paid work.Chair of NIMGA Frank Donnelly said mushroom farms had repeatedly sought to recruit local workers, but "despite our best efforts, this is not producing the numbers required to meet the demand".
"Our farms are resilient but the cumulative impact of the lack of access to labour, rising business costs as well as lack of competitive playing field with our neighbours in the Republic of Ireland means that farmers are increasingly faced with the prospect of closure or moving operations to the south."
Inclusion on the SOL means lower visa application fees and lower salary requirements, but does not exempt an occupation from meeting the wider requirements of the skilled worker visa route, such as having a sponsored job offer and English language skills.