Government report warns of catastrophic risk to Britain’s food supply

Government warning

A government report has warned that Britain’s food supply is “at strategic risk of catastrophic failure,” raising concerns about the country’s ability to maintain safe and stable food supplies.

Commenting on coverage of the report, *Status of Defra’s critical systems to 2030 and beyond*, Tom Lancaster, a land, food and farming analyst at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, said the findings were “incredibly stark,” particularly for the UK’s ability to feed itself.

Climate and harvest pressures

Lancaster said the warning signs were already visible, noting that the UK has experienced three of its worst harvests on record in the past five years and has also endured a major food price shock.

He said the challenge of producing enough food could become significantly harder in the years ahead. According to Lancaster, climate change is now “probably the biggest risk to global food production,” and those threats will intensify unless emissions are cut to net zero.

He also argued that broader pressures such as climate change make the UK more vulnerable to other shocks, including the current oil price spike.

Call for transparency

Lancaster questioned why the public had not been made aware of the assessment, given its relevance to national food security. He said this was the second such assessment to be reported this year.

Without greater transparency, he said, it would be difficult for the government and others to build support for the changes needed to avoid the “collapse” warned of in the report.