The government was forced to shelve the launch of a new National Food Strategy this week amid outrage over the budget, which saw thousands of farmers protest in Westminster, The Grocer can reveal.
It’s understood ministers were poised to make an announcement on plans for a strategy including actions to tackle obesity, with the potential for measures on ultra-processed foods, to reduce carbon emissions from excess red meat consumption, and to tackle Food Poverty.
Labour is widely tipped to revive elements of the National Food Strategy published by former health tsar Henry Dimbleby in 2021.
However, The Grocer understands the plug was pulled on this announcement when it emerged 10,000 farmers were set to descend on Westminster to protest Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ changes to Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief.
“The announcement was all lined up but the government decided to pull it because of the protests,” said an industry source. “It was worried the proposals would be overshadowed by the backlash against the Inheritance Tax changes in the budget.”
Food and drink at the heart of the strategy
Sources said it was still possible the plans would be unveiled before Christmas but that it would depend on how long the protests lasted.
This week, environment secretary Steve Reed told an FDF summit the government would put the food and drink industry at the heart of its strategy.
“We have started work towards a food strategy and that needs to look at the entirety of the food sector all the way from production, manufacturing, sale, consumption, the whole thing,” he said.
“We will ensure the sector is fully involved in the cross-government work we will start to do.”
Meanwhile, Reed laid the blame for the new tax moves on farmers firmly at the feet of the previous government.
He told The Grocer: “We didn’t anticipate making these changes before the election because we didn’t anticipate there would be a £22bn black hole in the public finances that the previous government had deliberately covered up.”
FDF CEO Karen Betts urged the government to collaborate to unlock a “£14bn growth opportunity” through investment in technology, measures to upskill the UK’s food and drink workforce and support for food’s inclusion under ‘advanced manufacturing’ in its industrial strategy.
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