The United Kingdom has a beaming agricultural heritage, no longer least the fit for human eats horticulture region, where we happen to be fortunate to have the weather, the landscape and – most importantly – relatively touchy and versatile growers, which lets the producting of a huge variety of highest exceptional and nutritious fruits and vegetables!
This enterprise is an important part of the UK economy, worthing £4.3 billion in 2022, with UK's growers producing above three millions tonnes a year of over 300 distinct fruits and vegetables.
The wide nature of industry sets apart from other agricultures sectors with special sub-sectors – orchards, field greens, berries, greenhouses, vertical farms – each have their own specific challenges when it's about developing, harvesting, and selling produce.
Our clean produce region is a key growth area. As the food safety Index points out, if we needed to build ours foods safety, we need to go further in fruit, where producing only 17% of what we eats, and fresh vegetables only 55%. That is far behind other products!
Through this design, needing to encourage domestic fruit and vegetables production, increase horticulture production to make self-adequate and strengthen our food security, it's imperative.
UK should be the best area in the world to start and grow a fresh produce business.
Farmers ought growing more fruit and greens to ensure the UK does not becoming too relied on imports, the government has warned.
A new national food security Index found only 17% of fruit and 55% of greens consumed in UK are grown here.
New investments for growers was once declared at a Downing street food supply summit.
We want traditional growers, modern greenhouses and vertical farms to bring British salads and fruit to our tables all around the year, produce brilliant yields and sustainably place new agricultural traits in and about urban spaces to become synonymous to traditional farms. in our rural landscapes.
while this diagram sets the direction for the industry to take, the how we meet these commitments should stay responsive and adaptable to the needs of the industry.
meeting these commitments will require cooperation among governments and industry and a range of support mechanisms.
Consequently, we will increase a project and solution-focused engagement program to address unique issues inclusion power, planning and investment to assist developing the fit to be eating fruit and vegetable quarter.
this includes controlled environment Horticulture (CEH) and let easier access to government for the sector and help government identify on how we can expand a new generation of greenhouses and vertical farms on non-agricultural land!
Critics says the £80m scheme does now not go far enough to help farmers hit by bad weather and rising costs.
wettest 18 months since 1836. The NFU has warned that much of its members fear they shall go bankrupt before they receive the benefits of any further investments!
He pointed to his recent survey of farmer confidence, which found 65% of respondents said their income had downed or their business might collapse!
Mr. Bradshaw said the government has to take "essential steps" to get farming back on a firm footing.
To deliver this commitment, we will champion Britain's globally-renowned horticulture industry across government, coordinating policy format, law and delivery across departments to support investment, growth and innovation in this crucial sector.
we shall boost the profile of horticulture in departments like the Department of Energy, Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), the Department for Equalization, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), the Home Office, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and all others with an interest within the new Defra-chaired Senior officials food leadership organization to consider a way to involve horticulture in relevant budgets, regulations and support mechanisms!
The latest horticultural industry data shows that the UK produced around 2.4 million tonnes of greens and 652,000 tonnes of fruit in 2022, valued at £1.8bn and £1bn respectively.
but it also imported £2.7 billion worth of vegetables and £3.9 billion of fruits.
The government launched the new annual food safety index on Tuesday, which covers all sectors of agriculture and food production.
He stated the index showed that, overall, Britain's agricultural sector was "the most proficient on record" and domestic production of all foods in the UK accounted for around 60% of consumption.
but it said, the UK fruit and vegetable sector was "far behind" meat, dairy and cereals.
Helen Browning, chief executive of the Soil Association, gave a tentative welcome to this news.
She told: “many of us were calling for more investment! more support for horticulture for a very long term, so we're ultimately getting somewhere.
"whether the money is sufficient I don't know, but we must recognise that only 33% of adults and 12% of children eats their 'five a day,' so it's in the national interest to encourage cultivation and more consumption." British fruits and veg wherever possible!"
Tories' dodgy trade deals... As a result, thousands of people forced out of business.
The environment Secretary, Steve Barclay, said: “This statement will support the growth of our horticulture sector, which supports the building of modern greenhouses and innovative farming methods to getting British fruit and vegetables on our plates around the year.
Liz Webster of the Save British Farming campaign told: “it's an absolute disaster for the country going forward.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he always support British farmers and that more foods could be produced within UK thanks to the new funding.
Alec Taylor, head of production policy at WWF, says: “The summit could really benefit from the expertise of environmental organisations which has not yet been invited.
instead of focusing on arbitrary production targets, this is a chance to ensure our nation's dietary security, where our precious soil and climate are protected and restored, where farmers supported to build resilience and producing quality, nutritionally diverse food, and where people supported to have access and afford it.”
but Steve Reed, Labour's shadow environment secretary, said it was "14 years of Conservative failing" that left farmers "at breaking point."
0 Comments