As the first Conservative MP to have been elected for Carlisle since 1959, I am proud of our city's strong industrial heritage, which boasts a diverse mix of leading manufacturers including top food producers Carr's Milling, Nestlé and United Biscuits.
So I am delighted to have been elected chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Food and Drink Manufacturing Group (APPG).
As the UK's largest manufacturing industry, the food and drink sector will play an important role in efforts to rebalance the economy away from over-reliance on financial services.
The sector has always provided economic stability during turbulent times and seems to have weathered the recent economic storms better than most.
A recent report from the Institute for Manufacturing at the University of Cambridge shows that the food industry reduced its output least during the economic downturn and has returned to pre-recession output levels fastest. While the index of production for all manufacturing is currently at 90 basis points, for instance, the food sector is at 99 basis points a 1% difference compared with 2005 levels.
Despite its success, there are many challenges facing the industry not least how it goes about encouraging talented people to choose food manufacturing as a career destination. The image of the food sector is one of temporary and relatively low-paid employment. The Institute for Manufacturing's report, commissioned by the Food and Drink Federation, dispelled some myths and found that jobs in the industry reflect its growing innovation base and increasing productivity and skills are rising accordingly. But image problems clearly remain.
The APPG provides a forum for meaningful dialogue about these sorts of challenges ensuring MPs are more aware of the concerns of a sector that directly employs about 440,000 people and on which a further 1.2 million jobs depend.
With food issues high on the political agenda, the group will also ensure that the sector is supported in important policy debates, and that MPs understand the financial, strategic and social contributions of the industry.
The Institute for Manufacturing has been asked by the Food and Drink Federation to conduct a second phase of research, looking at the challenges for food and drink manufacturing as companies try to define their role in ensuring the nation's future food security.
Such work will be important in helping the group and our colleagues elsewhere in parliament to understand how best to create a sustainable future for food production and consumption by harnessing the power of the industry to invest and innovate, rather than developing policies or regulations that undermine the sector.
But while we want to ensure MPs are aware of the concerns of the industry, it is important the group also acts as a critical friend to the food sector raising issues we believe companies should address.
In political terms, food has never been so exciting, and manufacturing per se is rightly at the heart of the debates about the future economic health of the UK.
You can find out more about the work of the APPG on its website: www.appgfooddrink.org.uk.
John Stevenson MP is chair of the All Party Parliamentary Food & Drink Manufacturing Group.
So I am delighted to have been elected chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Food and Drink Manufacturing Group (APPG).
As the UK's largest manufacturing industry, the food and drink sector will play an important role in efforts to rebalance the economy away from over-reliance on financial services.
The sector has always provided economic stability during turbulent times and seems to have weathered the recent economic storms better than most.
A recent report from the Institute for Manufacturing at the University of Cambridge shows that the food industry reduced its output least during the economic downturn and has returned to pre-recession output levels fastest. While the index of production for all manufacturing is currently at 90 basis points, for instance, the food sector is at 99 basis points a 1% difference compared with 2005 levels.
Despite its success, there are many challenges facing the industry not least how it goes about encouraging talented people to choose food manufacturing as a career destination. The image of the food sector is one of temporary and relatively low-paid employment. The Institute for Manufacturing's report, commissioned by the Food and Drink Federation, dispelled some myths and found that jobs in the industry reflect its growing innovation base and increasing productivity and skills are rising accordingly. But image problems clearly remain.
The APPG provides a forum for meaningful dialogue about these sorts of challenges ensuring MPs are more aware of the concerns of a sector that directly employs about 440,000 people and on which a further 1.2 million jobs depend.
With food issues high on the political agenda, the group will also ensure that the sector is supported in important policy debates, and that MPs understand the financial, strategic and social contributions of the industry.
The Institute for Manufacturing has been asked by the Food and Drink Federation to conduct a second phase of research, looking at the challenges for food and drink manufacturing as companies try to define their role in ensuring the nation's future food security.
Such work will be important in helping the group and our colleagues elsewhere in parliament to understand how best to create a sustainable future for food production and consumption by harnessing the power of the industry to invest and innovate, rather than developing policies or regulations that undermine the sector.
But while we want to ensure MPs are aware of the concerns of the industry, it is important the group also acts as a critical friend to the food sector raising issues we believe companies should address.
In political terms, food has never been so exciting, and manufacturing per se is rightly at the heart of the debates about the future economic health of the UK.
You can find out more about the work of the APPG on its website: www.appgfooddrink.org.uk.
John Stevenson MP is chair of the All Party Parliamentary Food & Drink Manufacturing Group.
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