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MPs warn UK fresh vegetable self-sufficiency has dropped to 53%, lowest since 1988

The UK government is urged to adopt a strategy to enhance domestic food production by 30% by 2050, according to MPs from the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Science and Technology in Agriculture (APPGSTA). The UK, with its conducive climate and advanced agri-science, is positioned to increase food output. However, reliance on imports, such as wheat, is at a peak since records began 30 years ago.

The APPGSTA highlights that the UK will meet only 15% of its vegetable oil needs this year, a decline from 40% a decade ago. The group's '30:50:50 vision' aims to boost food production by 30% while cutting farming's environmental impact by 50%. Their 'Innovation Agenda for UK Agriculture' calls for government objectives to achieve this.

George Freeman MP, chair of the APPGSTA, acknowledges the government's commitment to food security but questions if current policies will support increased food production. Freeman notes, "Potato production is at its lowest level for more than a decade, and Defra figures indicate that UK self-sufficiency in fresh vegetables, at 53%, is at its lowest since records began in 1988."

Freeman emphasizes the need for long-term goals to leverage advances in agricultural science and innovation. The US has set a similar agenda to boost production by 40% by 2050 while reducing its environmental footprint. Freeman suggests the UK should adopt a comparable strategy to sustainably increase food production.

Source: Farming UK

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