Defra officials regularly engage with stakeholders across the food supply chain to understand their work to promote British produce in-store and online. We strongly support efforts to promote British food and back our farmers, who produce some of the best food in the world. This is why the food strategy will set the food system up for long-term success and ensure that our food system can feed the nation, realise its potential for economic growth, protect the planet, and nourish individuals, now and in the future.

Defra supports environmentally friendly farming, including the growing of the UK’s delicious fruits and vegetables, through numerous routes. This includes working with LEAF (Linking the Environment and Farming), the organic sector and CFE (Championing the Farmed Environment). 45% of all UK produced fruit and vegetables are LEAF Marqued, which means they are grown to high environmental standards using integrated farm management techniques.

We are introducing three schemes that reward the delivery of environmental benefits: the Sustainable Farming Incentive, the Local Nature Recovery scheme and the Landscape Recovery scheme. The schemes aim to pay land managers for the delivery of public goods as they undertake sustainable farming practices, improve animal health and welfare, reduce carbon emissions, create and preserve habitat, and make landscape-scale environmental changes.

Our communications and engagement teams work in partnership to raise awareness of these new schemes, and encourage farmers to consider existing ones like Countryside Stewardship where appropriate. Our combined activity includes Q&A webinars, attendance and presentations at agricultural shows, our Future Farming blog, and physical communications products like our Farming is Changing leaflet.

The Government recommends that children over the age of five years eat at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables a day as part of a healthy balanced diet. This advice is reflected in the United Kingdom’s national food model, the Eatwell Guide at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-eatwell-guide

Start4Life and Change4Life, Public Health England’s social marketing programmes, promote consumption of vegetables, including green vegetables, as part of 5 A Day fruit and vegetable messaging through: the Food Scanner app, Change4Life and Start4Life websites, the fruit and vegetables boost email programme, regular update emails to the Change4Life database of 340,000 families and a public information radio advert.

The school food standards for England state that one or more portions of vegetables or salad must be served every day. The Government’s School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme aims to ensure all children in Key Stage 1 in England receive a piece of fruit or vegetables every day.

Our horticultural sector produces a wide range of excellent, healthy products. The sector continues to innovate and use new technologies which have enabled it to take advantage of market opportunities both at home and overseas. The Government is keen to work with the horticulture sector to build on this success and help it flourish.

Public Health England is aware of a recently published study which reports that the consumption of carrots is associated with a reduced risk of prostate cancer. Government recommends people eat at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables a day and carrots can be included as part of this. The variety message is important as different fruit and vegetables contain different nutrients and components and this variety is important for overall health and wellbeing.