Comment on government's food strategy

Responding to the Government’s Food Strategy, James Cullimore, Nature Spokesman for the Conservative Environment Network, commented:

"The tragic war in Ukraine has reinforced the importance of sustainable domestic food production for our national resilience. The government is right to support farm businesses to become more productive and greener by adopting new environmentally-friendly technologies and incentivising sustainable farming techniques.

"The strategy also contains a welcome commitment to unlocking opportunities in innovative novel foods and indoor growing systems so we can produce more food at home.

"But it's disappointing that the government is reducing its commitment to funding large-scale nature restoration. When projects are supported on unproductive farmland, they can tackle climate change, improve water quality, recover biodiversity, and improve food security.

"The strategy is also a missed opportunity to set out specific approaches for safeguarding environmental standards in trade deals to prevent the offshoring of food production."