Farmers are highlighting the increasing pressures on UK food production, with Jamie Burrows, an arable farmer in Norfolk and chair of the crops board at the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), stating that some businesses may not survive. He noted the difficulty in financing crops due to rising costs.
The cost of red diesel, used for agricultural vehicles, has almost doubled since the conflict in Iran began in late February. Over the same period, the cost of most fertilisers has also increased by approximately 20%.
These financial pressures come after the UK experienced its hottest summer on record, which included a succession of heatwaves and drought conditions. Official production estimates indicate this resulted in England's worst recorded cereals harvest.
Food experts, academics, businesses, and the National Audit Office (NAO) have recently urged the government to enhance the resilience of the UK’s food system. Threats identified include the climate crisis, the El Niño weather pattern, geopolitical shocks, energy outages, and cyber-attacks.
Amid calls for food to be treated as a national security issue, parliament’s public accounts committee is set to begin a series of hearings on Monday. This inquiry will examine the resilience of the UK’s food supply, including the NAO’s findings on shortcomings in a previous catastrophe planning exercise by Defra.
The Cabinet Office plans to launch a campaign advising households to stock up on tinned foods as part of preparations for potential future emergencies. The government's Prepare website suggests storing items like bottled water and non-perishable food.