A task force to support English production and boost the consumption fruit and vegetables was launched this week by environment secretary Hilary Benn.
The move was announced on Wednesday, when Benn visited New Covent Garden Market for the first time to talk to traders about their relationships with the suppliers and buyers, the effects of the recession and the opportunities for the Nine Elms site as it continues its process of redevelopment.
The 20-strong working group will stretch across the supply chain to include growers, wholesalers, retailers, consumers and researchers, with the aim of developing an action plan to increase both the production and consumption of fruit and vegetables.
The team will look at ways to support commercial growers and how they can get consumers to grow their own fruit and vegetables, with an emphasis on young people and low-income families, who are less likely to achieve the recommended 5 A DAY.
Benn intends to give English growers the opportunity to produce as much as they can to meet consumer demand.
However, he identified the barriers to production as including the need to develop clear career paths to attract young people to the industry, the availability of seasonal workers, volatile energy costs and the effects of climate change, including the availability and cost of water.
The group will include National Farmers’ Union chief horticultural advisor Phil Hudson, Fresh Produce Consortium chief executive Nigel Jenney, British Retail Consortium food policy director Andrew Opie, Tesco UK produce director Alex Dower and KG Growers chairman Marion RegaIn, among others.
Benn told freshinfo: “I have launched the fruit and vegetable task force because I want to get more people eating more fresh produce, especially British produce - and hand in hand with this, I want growers to produce more British produce.
“The idea for the working group came out of a recommendation from the Council of Food Policy Advisors and we will be bringing together a range of interested people, from growers to retailers.”
He continued: “If we grow and eat more fruit and vegetables here - in our greenhouses, in our orchards, in our fields, our allotments and in our own back gardens - it will be good for our health, our farming community and our landscape.
“There is a gap at the moment between what we consume and what we grow here, but there’s no reason why we can’t grow more here. And the main thing we can do to encourage this is to choose, and eat, British produce.
“We need make sure our farmers can compete successfully with imports, are resilient to the effects of climate change and that we’re getting fresh talent into the industry so that we can continue to grow world-class fruit and vegetables.”
Andy Burnham, secretary of state for health, added: "Getting Britain growing more fruit and veg isn't just good news for our farmers - eating it is the tastiest way for the rest of us to maintain a healthy lifestyle too. We know the demand is there - the latest Health Survey for England results showed an increase in the number of people eating fruit and vegetables and our 5 A DAY campaign is supporting families to get even more fruit and vegetables in their diets.”
No comments yet