New investment to boost innovation in the sector, where Defra will look to double £80 million the amount of funding given to horticulture businesses when compared to the EU legacy Fruit and Vegetable Aid Scheme
A major package of measures to support farmers and grow the UK’s farming and food sector has been announced by the government of the UK.
The package, unveiled at the Farm to Fork Summit hosted by the Prime Minister at Downing Street, 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.
This includes a new Blueprint for Growing the UK 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 UK economy.
The plan 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 Defra will look to double £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 the publication of the first draft Food Security Index, setting out key data and trends to allow the government and industry to safeguard the UK’s food security. This will allow us to monitor 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. Building on our commitment to 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 our 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 has also announced further action to ensure fairness across the food supply chain, committing to delivering regulations to improve fairness in the fresh produce and egg sectors.
