Defra statistics for 2022 showed the UK is 60% self-sufficient in all foods. If we only ate food produced in the UK from 1st January we would run out of food on 9th August.
NFU President Minette Batters called on the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to ‘put words into action’ and introduce legislation to ‘ensure the UK’s self-sufficiency does not drop below its current level of 60%’.
Batters said: “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.
“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.”