The need to reduce our reliance on imports is rising up the political agenda. Michael Barker asks what can be done to increase primary production


The last time the British government published a UK food strategy, the biggest threat to consumers' wellbeing came not from GM food or pesticides but Luftwaffe bombs.

Six decades later and Defra believes the threat to our food supply from issues such as global warming, water shortages and a rising world population is serious enough to warrant a root-and-branch assessment of UK food security. Increasing British production in a sustainable way is the mantra of the day, and the launch of this week's consultation into the future of food production sends out stark messages about how Britain should look to feed itself. But does Britain have the potential or capacity to increase primary agricultural production, and despite all its tub-thumping is the government doing enough to enable producers to meet demand?

Defra Secretary of State Hilary Benn has certainly been banging the drum for British production this week, arguing that sustainable British agriculture is the only way to protect long-term food supply. "One of the ways we can encourage more British production is to buy British products, so as consumers we have a real opportunity [to help producers] with the choices we make," Benn told The Grocer at the report's launch this week.

Benn cited the 90ha Thanet Earth development where tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers are grown year-round under glass using environmentally friendly technology as the kind of initiative that can help the British food industry meet those goals.

Doubters argue there are some pretty big obstacles to overcome if Britain's self-sufficiency is to increase beyond the present 60%. In dairy, milk production has been declining for five years and now stands at a 40-year low, while imports of cheese are on the rise. For domestic production to rise again, heifer numbers need to increase so farmers can get their hands on replacement cows, according to Dairy UK policy director Peter Dawson. The government also needs to play its part in helping control the impact of bluetongue and bovine TB.

Yet there are signs UK producers are working to reduce our reliance on imports. Moves are afoot to reduce the vast number of yoghurts imported, with Austria's Nom opening a £40m own-label production facility in Shropshire. There have also been huge investments by Robert Wiseman, Arla and Dairy Crest in creating modern processing plants capable of producing dairy foods to high environmental standards warding off criticism of dairy's environmental footprint.

The NFU has long argued that British farmers have the capability to meet the nation's needs provided they get the right support. Meat producers need clear messages from government over which feeds are acceptable, says president Peter Kendall, while the co-ordination of food research needs to be improved. The vast majority of poultry and lamb sold in British supermarkets is home produced, but there is potential to raise the level of domestic pork if farmers can be incentivised to invest in pigs. Recent price rises will help.

Perhaps the most complicated area to tackle is fresh produce, where only 11% of fruit and 60% of veg are UK-produced. Benn last month set up a joint government-industry working group to examine ways of increasing both production and consumption of fresh produce in the UK.


Glasshouse parks
The government's stance sets a platform for domestic growers to increase production, claims the FPC. "There is a significant opportunity for UK growers to increase the sustainable production of indigenous crops," says FPC chief executive Nigel Jenney. "Defra should help provide focus for the industry to evaluate the potential for increasing these crops and ensuring the sector has the tools to maximise this potential."

The fresh produce industry is already calculating greenhouse gas emissions, reducing packaging and recovering energy in the production process, Jenney says. But critics argue the industry needs more support for large projects if the reliance on imported produce is to be reduced. In an interview with The Grocer this year Chris Mack, chairman of Thanet Earth owner Fresca Group, cast doubt on the likelihood of further 'glasshouse parks'.

"It's very hard to secure suitable sites in the UK. Planning permission would be a big issue, but you need light, a large flat area, access to gas, access to the electrical grid, a sympathetic planning committee and the finance. It's difficult to replicate."

Growers have long complained about the difficulty in getting planning permission for glasshouses or polytunnels, or indeed securing work visas for seasonal labour, and these issues will have to be addressed if UK production is to increase, sources claim. A change in public mindset may also be needed if 'out-of-season' produce grown under glass is to be embraced.

The consultation has also reignited the debate over the potential of GM food. The Agricultural Biotechnology Council says new methods are needed to increase crop yields and productivity in a more sustainable way. "Agricultural biotechnology, particularly GM, cannot alone solve these massive challenges, but it can be a significant part of the solution, through the development of higher and more reliable crop yields and mitigation of major threats to crop production such as pests, diseases and drought," says ABC chairman Dr Julian Little.

Benn has refused to rule out GM, and indeed, in the non-committal way that is his trademark, he appeared to endorse it in comments this week. There are also known to be many sympathetic voices within Defra, not least farming and food science deputy director Sue Popple, who told a meat industry conference in April that GM could be a "good way to go forward."

The idea of greenlighting mass GM production has been given short shrift by Friends of the Earth, which insists the "mythical drought and salt-resistant crops still exist only as expensive PR promises rather than commercial reality".

The group argues that increased domestic production will only come if the government introduces a supermarket watchdog to get a fair deal for farmers and shoppers and recognises the need to address meat and dairy emissions.

And what role for consumers? Benn highlighted the new trend for allotments and home growing, while WWF is urging shoppers to eat less meat and dairy. The drive to buy British has huge momentum, but there's a difficult balance between offering British food and offering the best prices.

Defra's 119-page report this week may not have painted a detailed picture of the future of UK food, but if the intense debate it has already generated is any indicator, there will be no lack of crystal ball gazers adding their own advice.