Wildfires across Europe have forced more than 300,000 people to evacuate their home this week. And with drought now declared across more than half the UK and fires beginning to break out here too, there are growing warnings that Europe’s crisis is giving us a glimpse of our own “new normal”.
For much of the UK these dramatic scenes still feel distant, but for the food industry they are already far too close to home. European wildfires are exposing the fragility of a system that relies heavily on imports. At the same time, drought and water shortages are threatening UK production. Together, they are a stark reminder of the reality we have been warned about for years: food security cannot be separated from climate resilience.
The question is not whether the UK’s food system is vulnerable to these changes, it is whether our government is serious about protecting it with the same strategic heft as is given to energy, defence and other critical infrastructure.
After years of fragmented food policies and strategies that failed to get underway, the idea is finally beginning to gain traction. This week, Tesco finally joined NGOs, health groups and other grocers in urging Andy Burnham to introduce a Good Food Bill. Calling for a legislative framework to tackle food insecurity, improve diets and strengthen resilience isn’t exactly a new idea, but Tesco’s move to join the latest campaign feels significant. For once, supermarkets, charities, farming groups and health campaigners are all demanding the same action.
Crucially, this means the proposals – which include a solid list of goals to improve food security, boost domestic fruit & veg production and place food policy on a long-term statutory footing – have industry backing right from the start.
The real test is whether Burnham’s new government can maintain the spirit of cross-industry collaboration six months from now. Burnham has a coalition in the room ready to work together and the opportunity to deliver a genuinely joined-up food strategy that successive governments have promised but failed to deliver. The real tragedy would be if that momentum goes to waste.
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