Written question asked by Lindsay Hoyle (Labour) on Tuesday, 24 January 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 26 January 2006. It was answered by Ben Bradshaw (Labour) on Monday, 6 February 2006 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

UK Food Security

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment her Department has made of the percentage of (a) indigenous food and (b) all food consumed in the UK produced in the UK; and if she will make a statement on her Department's policy on amounts of food imported.

Answer: The latest published figures for 2004 show the UK was (a) 74.2 per cent. self-sufficient in indigenous food and (b) 63.4 per cent. self-sufficient in all food. This compares with figures for 2000 of 80.3 per cent. and 66.8 per cent. respectively.The Government naturally takes the issue of food security very seriously. Food security is about ensuring that consumers have access to a stable and adequate supply of food, whether domestically produced or imported. The UK has long been a net importer of food and national and international food security is best facilitated through improved trading relationships based on more open international markets and reductions in trade distorting subsidies.Food supply is robust and resilient because of the high degree of demand and supply-side substitutability of foodstuffs. DEFRA works closely with all parts of the industry to ensure that appropriate support is provided to maintain supply throughout the chain in the event of significant disruption.

Secondary information