Parliamentary group warns of 32% fall in UK food production

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Aerial view of Big Ben and House of Parliament in London, UK

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A parliamentary group warned there could be a 32% drop in food production unless urgent action is taken

The UK is at a “watershed moment” according to a study which found domestic food production could fall by 32% by 2050.

The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Science and Technology in Agriculture said domestic food production could decline by 39% per capita if current productivity growth rates remain the same, and farming and land-use policies are not reformed to enhance yields.

The ‘Feeding Britain sustainably to 2050 – the 30:50:50 mission’ study urged the government to embed its ‘30:50:50’ mission, which aims to increase agricultural output by 30% by 2050 while reducing farming’s environmental footprint by 50%.

“Productivity growth has stalled” despite favourable growing conditions, agri-science, and the UK’s “highly professional farming sector”, said APPGSTA chair George Freeman MP.

“Across successive governments, fragmented support policies, inconsistent regulation and a failure to translate scientific advances into practice have constrained progress,” he added.

According to the MP, research conducted by Defra indicated current farm policies will reduce, or displace, domestic food production.

Without action, he said, there will be an erosion of the UK’s food autonomy, making it more reliant on imports at a time of geopolitical and climate instability.

The group also called for the strategic importance of food security to be elevated alongside environmental goals of biodiversity and net zero, with a statutory target of 75% self-sufficiency by 2050.

“The challenges of population growth, climate change, war and global instability demand a joined-up, cross-government response – not a siloed one,” said Freeman. “The APPGSTA 30:50:50 mission directly addresses these pressures, providing a framework to boost productivity and ensure UK farming remains globally competitive while producing more food, more sustainably.”

The APPGSTA’s report brought together stakeholder input and feedback following engagement with more than 100 organisations and individuals across the food and farming sector.

It said three takeaways have emerged from their research, including that the 30:50:50 ambition is widely endorsed as a long-term strategic framework, and that there is strong agreement the current policy framework is not fit for purpose to deliver against a ‘more from less’ agenda. It also found science, technology, and innovation must be central to a reframing of farm policy.

The report highlighted initiatives to realign agricultural policies to combine increased food production and sustainability internationally, such as the US’s Agricultural Innovation Agenda and the EU’s Vision for Agriculture.