A new report released in Britain suggests that the nation is relying far too heavily on imported fruit and vegetables from around the world. The UK’s “self-sufficiency ratio” shows a decline from a peak of almost 87% in the early 1990s to just 68% per cent in 2012. VoR's Simon Parker spoke to London fruit stall owner Stephen Dawes.
The UK's Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee report found that the UK is currently 77% self-sufficient in foods which can be produced at home, but this key indicator has declined steadily over the past 20 years, from 87%.
The report says the biggest long-term challenge to food production systems is the impact of extreme weather events resulting from climate change.
The Food Security report supports the idea of "sustainable intensification"—producing more food with fewer resources—and calls on Defra to stem decline in UK self-sufficiency and deliver more resilience in the UK food system. It notes that for key cereal crops, for example wheat, yield levels have not increased for over 15 years.
Stephen Dawes told VoR: "In summer it’s a different kettle of fish. In summer, we have summer fruits, but still then, we’ve got loads and loads of fruit coming from Spain.
“I’ve only worked here for three years and it’s been the same every summer. The winter’s a bit different, we sell mangos, papayas … but we’ve got Spanish strawberries, cherries for Germany, Spanish cherries.
“Later in the year you’ll have Spanish cherries, Peruvian asparagus and South African and Indian grapes. Coming into the summer, we get half-and-half: English strawberries, Dutch strawberries …
“Our customer like what they see. They always ask if we’ve got British strawberries, because I think British strawberries are the best. But if you can buy them cheaper, you’re going to get more profit and you’re going to buy them cheaper, aren’t you?”
