Food ‘must have same status as environment’

A changing global climate and worldwide economic instability are shining a light on the need to protect and boost Britain’s production of home-grown food.

That’s according to the NFU, which argues that in a year which has already seen UK agri-food inflation rise to 19.2 per cent, and global instability caused by the ongoing war in Ukraine, the recent bouts of extreme weather are further highlighting the frailties of the UK’s food system.

The farmers’ union has pinpointed 9 August as the day when the larder would run empty if we only ate food produced in the UK from 1 January. It has subsequently warned the government that it “needs to take domestic food production seriously and ensure food is given the same focus and political prioritisation as the environment”.

NFU president Minette Batters said: “I have never known such volatility in the global food system. Climate change is wreaking havoc on food production across the world, with farmers in southern Europe literally fighting fires while farmers here are despairing as they now must spend thousands of pounds to dry sodden grain.

“At the same time, the conflict in Ukraine is putting pressure on the global grain market. Ongoing inflation of input costs such as energy and fertiliser have meant that, for many farmers and growers, this year has already been incredibly expensive to produce food and now the weeks of wet weather mean more money is needed to dry the harvest that’s being gathered.

”On top of the domestic weather records that have been broken this year – the driest February in 30 years and the hottest June ever recorded, followed by a remarkably wet July – I would also add the most expensive arable harvest in generations.

“It is clear that our food supply chains need to be better prepared and more resilient to dealing with global shocks and the extremes of weather that are fast becoming the norm. While we will always be a trading nation in food, we cannot remain over-reliant on imports when other countries are also facing significant challenges economically and climatically.

”Our supply chains are too vulnerable. So, the government needs to take an active interest in the UK food chain resilience.

“It starts and ends with our food security. We need to be able to produce more of our own food at home, regardless of what else is going on in the world. Today puts that into context as it marks the day of the year we would run out of food if we only had access to UK produce.

“That’s why the Prime Minister needs to put words into action from his recent food summit and legislate to ensure the UK’s self-sufficiency does not drop below its current level of 60 per cent. Now is the time to build and ensure policies are in place to support the production of quality, climate-friendly, home-grown food. This government has statutory targets for the environment and ministers need now to give the same status to our food production.”