The Commercial Farmers Group (CFG) has published a discussion paper - Food security-Pressures on the Global food chain.
The CFG is urging the UK government to place high importance on the issue of food security and to evaluate the UK's ability to contribute to future global food supply.
World population forecasts are nine billion for 2030, a third more than the current population, reported the CFG, and in order to feed this number of people at a basic level will require tripling the current food supply.
A CFG spokesman said: "We should be very concerned that at the end of 2003, the world had only sufficient grain to last 63 days compared to stocks of 104 days at the end of 1999 - a reduction of 37 per cent."
The CFG, who represent the concern of UK commercial farmers and focus on the welfare and development of British agriculture within the national economy and environment, challenges the government to look at the following the various issues raised in the discussion paper which include: the introduction of a food supply audit; evaluation of global food demand and supply considering both population growth and climate changes; to reverse the current trend of decreasing research and development in the agricultural sector; to take a balanced approach between local and international food production and not only favour cheaper imported goods for short-term gain.
The CFG understand the importance of environmental preservation but believe it should be balanced by productive and sustainable farming. The spokesman added: "It will be very difficult and extremely expensive to replace resources of skilled labour, good soil structure and production, processing and distribution that create the food chain on which a successful and sustainable UK food and faring industry has been built".
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