UK families 'will face food shortages as the world’s population soars'

 
Advice: Environment secretary Owen Paterson
PA
7 January 2014

More families in Britain risk being plunged into “food poverty” shortages and price rises as the global population soars, experts warned today.

The Food Standards Agency stressed demand for food supplies would rise as the world’s population spirals from seven billion now to nine billion by 2050.

“This increase could weaken resilience in the food supply chain with the potential to entrench a global food security crisis,” the FSA told a Commons inquiry.

“As the UK is not self-sufficient in terms of food production, global food supply issues have the potential to impact on UK consumers, for instance increasing the incidence of food poverty within the UK.”

More food fraud scams like the horsemeat scandal could erupt amid growing competition for limited global supplies, the agency told the inquiry into food security by the Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee.

The warnings came as Environment Secretary Owen Paterson urged people to buy more British food and import a quarter less.

The UK currently ships in more than 40 per cent of its food including mountains of New Zealand lamb, Danish bacon, French apples and Spanish cucumbers.

“We have a top-class fruit and veg sector which produces everything from green beans to strawberries, yet we imported £8 billion of fruit and veg in 2012,” the minister was due to tell a farming conference.

“We can’t grow mangoes or pineapples, but we can encourage UK consumers and food businesses to buy Scottish raspberries or Kent apples.

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“This is a huge opportunity, and it’s up to all of us — farmers, food manufacturers and the Government — to take action.

“By buying seasonal fruit and veg we can improve the nation’s health, help the environment and boost the economy.”

The CLA organisation, which represents 33,000 farmers and landowners in the UK, stressed that nearly 70 per cent of our food imports currently comes from other EU countries.

They warned that if severe food shortages developed European countries could take “protectionist” action, so contingency plans might be needed for dealing with a breakdown of the EU single market.

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