Team Blitz India
The Government has announced a major package of measures to support farmers and grow the UK’s farming and food sector, according to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak unveiled the package at the Farm to Fork Summit hosted at Downing Street on May 14. It will support domestic food production, boost innovation in the sector supporting it to reach its economic potential, and recruit the next generation of farming and food leaders, the statement added. The plan includes a new blueprint for growing the UK’s fruit and vegetable sector, setting out how industry and Government can work together to increase domestic production and drive investment into this valuable sector which is worth more than £4 billion to the country’s economy.
It involves ensuring the sector has access to affordable and sustainable energy and water, cutting planning red tape to make it easier and quicker to build glasshouses, new investment to boost innovation in the sector where the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs will look to double to £80 million the amount of funding given to horticulture businesses when compared to the EU legacy Fruit and Vegetable Aid Scheme.
The summit also saw publication of the first draft Food Security Index, setting out key data and trends to allow government and industry to safeguard the UK’s food security. This will allow the monitoring of short-term trends across the UK.
In addition, the Government has set out how it will provide further support for farmers affected by the wet weather and extend the Farming Recovery Fund to support farmers who have been flooded. Temporary adjustments will be made for farmers and land managers where the wet weather has led to difficulties carrying out the requirements of the Environmental Land Management Schemes. There will also be £75 million to support internal drainage boards (IDBs) to accelerate recovery from the winter 2023-24 storms and provide opportunities to modernise and upgrade assets that benefit and support resilience for farms and rural communities.
The Government statement also shared the announcement of further action to ensure fairness across the food supply chain, committing to delivering regulations to improve fairness in the fresh produce and egg sectors.
