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Benn to unveil 20-year food plan Plans to boost UK food unveiled
(about 1 hour later)
Environment Secretary Hilary Benn is to outline a 20-year plan to increase food production on British farms. Plans to boost food production in Britain and reduce its impact on the environment have been unveiled.
He told the BBC a rising population and changing climate meant "food security" - the availability of food - could no longer be taken for granted. The government's 20-year food strategy also looks at making Britons eat more healthily and throw less food away.
Britain must increase food production, do it more sustainably and make sure food is more healthy, he said. Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said shoppers had led the push for more free-range eggs and could do the same for sustainable food.
The Tories say they plan a supermarket ombudsman to support farmers against abuses of power by big food retailers. The Tories say they plan a supermarket ombudsman to protect farmers against potential abuses of power by retailers.
Mr Benn is due to outline the government's agriculture strategy at the Oxford Farming Conference later on Tuesday. Mr Benn unveiled the government's Food 2030 plan at the Oxford Farming Conference - where the Conservatives are also outlining their plans - and said a rising population and climate change meant food could not be taken for granted.
Smaller portions
The document includes proposals for a "healthy food code of conduct" to help people choose what food to buy - ideas include clearer labelling, smaller portions for "energy dense" or high salt foods, reducing fat and sugar in foods and nutrition information on restaurant menus.
The government also wants less food waste, more food bought in season to reduce environmental impact and to make land available for people to grow their own food and to encourage them to buy sustainably-farmed food.
A decade ago, only 16% of eggs produced in the UK were free range. In the last 10 years that's more than doubled to just under 40% Hilary Benn Tory plan to 'curb' supermarkets
Addressing the conference, Mr Benn said the expansion of fair trade and free-range food illustrated how shoppers could drive trends in food production - and he hoped they could do the same for sustainable, locally-grown products.
"A decade ago, only 16% of eggs produced in the UK were free range. In the last 10 years that's more than doubled to just under 40%. Waitrose, M&S and the Co-op now sell only free range or organic eggs," he said.
"And with the UK 80% self-sufficient in free-range eggs this is a great example of how our farmers have responded to what consumers want, to the benefit of both."
More expensiveMore expensive
But he told the BBC better information for consumers would be a big part of it - letting people know where their food had come from - as well as tackling food waste - possibly using "anaerobic digestion" to turn it into energy and using resources like water and fertiliser more sustainably. Earlier he told the BBC a rising population and changing climate meant "food security" - the availability of food - could no longer be taken for granted.
Asked whether it would mean food becoming more expensive - he said 20 years ago British families spend about 20% of their income on food, now it had dropped to "just under 11%" - although families on low incomes still spent about 15-16% on food. The government wants Britain to increase food production, do it more sustainably and make sure food is more healthy, to tackle rising obesity.
We are about 60% self sufficient in the food that can be grown in this country Hilary Benn class="" href="/2/hi/uk_news/politics/8440538.stm">Tory plan to 'curb' supermarkets Mr Benn said 20 years ago British families spend about 20% of their income on food, now it had dropped to "just under 11%" - although families on low incomes still spent about 15-16% on food.
"In the end we are responsible for what we eat and we have choices that we can make which do impact on our health and that of our families - it's important we give consumers the information to help them make their choices," he said. The government wants to increase British food production
And Mr Benn said, for those who wanted to come into the industry, it was a time of "real opportunity". Asked whether it would mean food becoming more expensive, he said: "In the end we are responsible for what we eat and we have choices that we can make which do impact on our health and that of our families - it's important we give consumers the information to help them make their choices."
"We are about 60% self sufficient in the food that can be grown in this country, the fact is we are more self sufficient than we were in the 1930s and 1950s, that shows British agriculture is making a really important contribution, there's a lot of skill a lot of innovation out there." And, Mr Benn said, for those who wanted to come into the industry, it was a time of "real opportunity".
But the idea of "meat-free Mondays" - to reduce emissions from agriculture - was not a part of the strategy, he said, although there were changes that could be made to the way livestock was fed, the way the soil was tilled, and planting more trees.But the idea of "meat-free Mondays" - to reduce emissions from agriculture - was not a part of the strategy, he said, although there were changes that could be made to the way livestock was fed, the way the soil was tilled, and planting more trees.
"Our job as government is not to tell people what to eat but to enable them to make their own choices." 'Right balance'
Food writer Rose Prince told the BBC that better labelling of British food would not make a big difference to many people - as more were choosing eating out and since 1997 sales of convenience foods had increased by 300%. The National Farmers' Union said the government's plans were a "useful blueprint", but said the government needed to achieve "the right balance" between productivity and sustainability.
The Conservatives will unveil their own plans for a supermarket ombudsman at the same conference later - to settle disputes between retailers and suppliers. NFU president Peter Kendall said: "Farmers and growers are already demonstrating that they can produce more food while impacting less. What we now need are policies that underpin and enhance a productive agriculture sector."
Shadow environment spokesman Nick Herbert will say a voluntary code of practice will not work unless it is properly enforced. The Conservatives are unveiling their own plans for a supermarket ombudsman at the same conference - to settle disputes between retailers and suppliers.
The competition authorities concluded in 2007 that the supermarket industry was operating in the public interest and leading retailers such as Tesco were not overly dominant. Shadow environment spokesman Nick Herbert argues a voluntary code of practice will not work unless it is properly enforced.
But they called for an ombudsman to resolve disputes and ensure retailers did not exploit relationships with suppliers. He told the BBC: "We welcome the fact that the government has belatedly recognised the importance of food security, but they presided over a decade of declining British production, and we're importing more and more food from overseas.
"They can't just will the end of higher food production, without addressing the means and they're turning their back on proposals like honest food labelling, a supermarket ombudsman, animal health measures."