How Brexit threatens Britain’s food security
Unfortunately all the spare land is being built on, especially in the south east of England. So many fields that used to be farmed have been turned into housing estates. So not only will Brexit mean food shortages, but also a rise in house prices if we stop building.
Looks like a perfect storm brewing. Revolution only happens when people get hungry.
Quote:Food stocks are low in a just-in-time economy, an estimated three to five days’ worth. The UK doesn’t feed itself. It has dropped to 61% self-sufficiency, Defra reported last month. The UK has quietly become a “neo-imperialist” food economy, using other people’s land and low wage labour to feed people while consumers subsidise rich landowners and keep their land values high. The UK gets 30% of UK food from the EU. That rises to 40% for horticultural produce, of which consumers eat too little for health.
Unfortunately all the spare land is being built on, especially in the south east of England. So many fields that used to be farmed have been turned into housing estates. So not only will Brexit mean food shortages, but also a rise in house prices if we stop building.
Quote:In the short term, a weaker pound means imports cost more. And the UK’s food system is already pretty vulnerable to shock. Chief scientists have been warning as much for years.
Quote:Millions of food contracts depend on cross continental supply chains. It’s why roads are clogged with food wagons. The food system is heavily tied into Europe. To sever this web will be a task awesome and unprecedented in complexity.
Quote: There are already major challenges to the food system as the UK seeks to decarbonise it and shift diets away from overconsumption of ultra-processed foods – the major cause of non-communicable disease.
Looks like a perfect storm brewing. Revolution only happens when people get hungry.
