A fifth of UK fresh food imports from areas at risk of climate chaos, MPs warn
Thoughtful and scary stuff this story tells us:
About a fifth of the fresh food the UK imports comes from areas threatened with climate chaos, putting people’s health and diets at risk, MPs have found.
The environmental audit committee called on ministers to set out a clear plan for how the UK’s food supplies could be protected from the climate emergency and to publish information on how food may be affected by Brexit.
Currently, 40% of the UK’s food is imported, according to the report published on Tuesday. In the very near future, people would be at risk from sudden lurches in food prices if a no-deal Brexit resulted in trouble with imports, including higher costs, delays and shortages.
Mary Creagh, the chair of the committee, said: “We are facing a food security crisis, exacerbated by uncertainty over the UK’s future trading position with the EU and the rest of the world. Ministers must now publish all the information they hold from Operation Yellowhammer on food security and likely costs in the event of a no-deal Brexit.”
Beyond the immediate effects of Brexit, the climate emergency and changing trade relationships may put the British diet in jeopardy. The MPs called for a national food council that would cover food production, nutrition and public health issues, and for stringent annual targets to reduce the UK’s high levels of food waste.
Water consumption across the UK should be set at 100 litres (22 gallons) per person per day, the MPs found. This would require changes to water availability and potentially to metering. Sustainable cities should also be made more resilient to the effects of the climate crisis, and town planners should be more involved in improving the design of cities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, for instance through more efficient transport networks.