Britain is facing a tomato shortage as supplies to supermarkets such as market leader Tesco and number two chain Sainsbury’s were hit by harvest problems in southern Europe and northern Africa.

Traders said the situation was exacerbated by lower winter production at greenhouses in the UK and the Netherlands due to high energy costs.

Andrew Opie, head of food and sustainability at the British Retail Consortium (BRC), which represents the major supermarket chains, said the difficult weather conditions in southern Europe and northern Africa had caused problems with the harvest of various products such as tomatoes and peppers.

“While the problems are expected to last for a few weeks, supermarkets are able to manage supply chain issues and are working with farmers to ensure customers can access a wide range of fresh produce,” he added.

There have been many pictures on social media of empty fruit and vegetable shelves, with tomatoes in particular short supply.

Although largely self-sufficient during the summer months, Britain typically imports 95% of the tomatoes it consumes and 90% of the cabbages available to consumers between December and March, according to BRC figures.

Spanish producers also expressed concern.

“The situation is starting to become worrying, as some companies are starting to have problems meeting their customers’ schedules,” Almeria’s association of fruit and vegetable producers, Coexphal, said in a statement.

James Bailey, chief executive of supermarket chain Waitrose, said supply had been affected by extreme weather in Spain and northern Africa.

“It’s snowing and hailing in Spain, it was hailing in North Africa last week – that’s wiping out a lot of these crops,” he told LBC radio, adding that availability was expected to improve gradually.

Last year, Britain’s supermarkets suffered supply problems due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine but availability improved before Christmas, with the exception of eggs. Earlier this month, Morocco banned exports of tomatoes, onions and potatoes to west African countries in a bid to lower domestic prices and protect exports to Europe.