Researching the supply chain
Saskia wrote her dissertation, titled ‘Supply chain and economic issues, and their potential effects on UK food manufacturers’ as a part of her undergraduate degree in Human Nutrition with Food Marketing at Newcastle University. She sought to use her research as an opportunity to explore the perspectives of key stakeholders in the UK food manufacturing sector.
“The UK food manufacturing sector has faced a series of significant, and arguably unprecedented, supply-chain difficulties and economic pressures resulting from COVID-19, Brexit, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“My dissertation looked at understanding the impact of current and long-standing challenges from the perspective of stakeholders, and exploring the barriers faced by stakeholders in addressing the challenges and moving towards resolutions.”
NFU assistance
By winning the NFU dissertation sponsorship Saskia had access to the vast array of stakeholder contacts the NFU holds from across the agri-food supply chain. This proved instrumental by providing Saskia with key information for her dissertation.
“The NFU put me in touch with stakeholders from multiple sectors of the UK food manufacturing industry, as well as farmers from across the UK."
"Having a broader sample of interview participants gave me a greater insight into the challenges faced across the food supply chain and strengthened the quality of my dissertation”.
“The NFU have been great in offering support throughout writing my dissertation, from putting me in contact with interview participants to helping me find the latest industry news”
Saskia Bottomley
Saskia's conclusions
“Most stakeholders would like greater support from the government. In particular: upskilling and providing labour capability; targeted tac measures to encourage investment to drive efficiencies through improved automation; and creating the right regulatory environment for investment in energy security and infrastructure.”
Future applicants
“I initially thought that my dissertation wouldn’t be relevant to apply for the sponsorship as I don’t study agriculture, but the NFU has been great in offering support throughout writing my dissertation, from putting me in contact with interview participants to helping me find the latest industry news. I would definitely recommend other students taking advantage of this opportunity!”
