Huge public support to keep food self-sufficiency levels above 60%
5th October 2021
More than 54,000 people have signed a letter to Defra Secretary of State George Eustice in support of NFU calls for a commitment to not let Britain’s food production slip below its current level of 60% self-sufficiency.
The surge of support in just two weeks has seen tens of thousands of people urge Mr Eustice and the government to secure the future of Britain’s ability to feed itself and to use our self-sufficiency measure as a key metric in its report on food security which is due to be published this year.
NFU president Minette Batters said: “The amount of people who have signed our open letter to George Eustice in such a short space of time should send a very strong signal to government on how highly the British public value quality, sustainably produced British food, and the importance of having a resilient British food and farming sector.
“In 1984, the UK’s overall food self-sufficiency was 78%. In 2021, it is 60%. It becomes more and more challenging to be global leaders in climate-friendly food if we allow our own production levels to drop.
“We have seen in recent weeks just how fragile our food supply chains can be – particularly highlighted by the ongoing workforce shortages experienced by certain sectors of the economy, including the food and farming sectors in picking, packing, processing and distributing food.
“This year, for the first time, government has to report on Britain’s food security as part of the new Agriculture Act. We want ministers across Whitehall to have a greater ambition in promoting British food at home and abroad to aid Britain’s food security. Through this open letter to George Eustice, farmers and the public alike are calling on government to take immediate action and commit to not allowing our self-sufficiency levels to fall any further and take every opportunity to increase them.”
Last month, Jeremy Clarkson spoke at the NFU event at Westminster which called upon the government to commit to not allowing Britain’s self-sufficiency to drop below its 60% current level.
Clarkson said on the matter: “We can none of us see that happening, we can’t see the Germans coming across the Channel or the Chinese, but we still maintain a significant air force, army and navy.
“Surely if you’re going to maintain that level of defence to protect us, you would want to protect our food supply.”
He added that the 60% self-sufficiency was: “right at the bottom of the end of where you want to go, I think it should be much more like 80%, we’re capable of it, we’ve got the right climate, we have the right soil, we could easily do it”.
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