Supplementary memorandum submitted by
the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (SFS 57b)
FURTHER INFORMATION
FROM DEFRA
TO THE
EFRA COMMITTEE
Could Defra send the Committee a list of all its
workstreams relating to food security, with a few lines of explanation
about the objective of each workstream and the target completion
date? If there is any overlap/interaction with DfID on any of
these projects, please could this be specified
As the Government's lead department on food
policy, many aspects of Defra's work are of relevance to the UK's
continued food security, set in a global context. For the purposes
of this response, however, the most relevant current workstreams
of the department's Food Policy Unit, and other parts of Defra
with which it is working closely, are itemised below:
— The UK Food Security Assessment due
to be published in draft shortly will provide a picture of our
food security across six theme areas. The Assessment will provide
timely evidence on the key components of UK food security, and
trend information to alert policy makers to potential changes
requiring further examination. By its nature the Assessment will
be on-going, and capable of adjustment to reflect emerging conditions.
The first final set of indicators comprising the Assessment will
be published in the autumn. It has required close work with a
number of Government departments, including DFID.— We
have been developing a more detailed description of our long term
goal for a sustainable and secure UK food system (to meet the
recommendation in PMSU's Food Matters report), in partnership
with the FSA and DH. A draft of this will be published shortly
for wider discussion and consultation, and finalised with an Action
Plan in the autumn. Actions will reflect the inclusive process
of engagement with individuals and organisations to define the
Vision that Defra has undertaken since Food Matters was
published in July 2008.— Indicators for a Sustainable
UK Food System to provide timely information on the progress of
key agreed components of the Vision. These indicators will sit
alongside the UK Food Security Assessment to provide a complete
picture of the key elements of the UK's Sustainable and Secure
Food System. We aim to publish these in draft shortly and, following
public consultation, produce a first final set of indicators in
the autumn.
— We are running a project examining the
impact of food price increases and the economic downturn on the
ability of low income and vulnerable households in the UK to eat
well. This will report in the autumn.
— Jim Fitzpatrick is co-chairing the
Foresight Global Food and Farming Futures project with Mike Foster
at DfID to examine how to feed nine billion healthily and sustainably
by 2050. The report is due to finalise its recommendations in
autumn 2010.
— We are continuing to work closely
with DFID, building on the new International Development White
Paper due shortly, to contribute to efforts to tackle hunger and
food insecurity in a sustainable way (i.e. MDG 1 & MDG 7),
including through the Global Partnership for Agriculture and Food
Security (GPAFS) and engagement with FAO.
— We are also carrying out research
into how we can increase global food production to meet global
2030 food needs in the most environmentally sustainable way. This
is due to report by the autumn.
Could Defra send the Committee any further information
about the work it is carrying out to map the main risks to food
security (Q 546)
It is possible to conceive of an array of environmental,
technical, political and economic risks, threats and challenges
to our food system. This was discussed with participants at stakeholder
workshops in autumn 2008. Defra has also been building on the
categorisation of risks contained in its 2006 publication, Food
security and the UK: An Evidence and Analysis Paper,[20]
and work by the OECD, and mapping them according to a number of
themes in the draft Food Security Assessment being developed.
In this assessment we are taking a "balanced
scorecard" approach to the risks and challenges to our food
security. This reflects the complex and cross-cutting nature of
our food supply. The indicators in the Assessment provide insights
into the range of issues underlying our food security, how they
fit together, and form an evidence-based framework for assessing
the impact of different threats or "what if?" scenarios.
They can be considered collectively in order to assess any material
changes to our overall food security, as well as to highlight
any potential trade-offs between them.
Other types of analysis occurring across Government
will help us understand the short, medium and long term risks
and challenges affecting our food security. The UK Food Security
Assessment will sit alongside indicators for a sustainable UK
food system, currently in draft, and due to be finalised later
this year, to present a picture of how well all of us are achieving
our goal of a secure and sustainable food system. Additionally,
the Foresight Project on Global Food and Farming Futures is taking
a longer term perspective. It aims to produce practical recommendations
about how to feed nine billion people sustainably and healthily
by 2050, and will report next year. Other work has also used different
approaches, for example, Chatham House has described and explored
the implications of four different possible scenarios of the future[21],
while the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit has looked ahead into
the future and identified a wide range of strategic challenges[22].
We can use such studies to inform the ongoing development of the
food security assessment, and particularly our view of whether
it explores resilience to the correct range of risks. Defra is
also working to analyse the policy relationships between UK food
security and other key policy objectives of the Government. We
need a more sophisticated understanding of the connections between
UK food security and other policy areas such as biodiversity,
water availability, and climate change.
The UK Food Security Assessment will be informed
in future by outcomes from these other approaches to analysing
the risks and challenges affecting our food security, but will
be a key evidence-based tool in helping us meet the needs of a
resilient UK food system now and in the medium term. It will do
this in three main ways: (i) by communicating a better understanding
of the elements compromising UK food security, and promoting discussion
on a wide-basis of appropriate priorities and policies; (ii) by
assessing any material improvement or deterioration in the different
dimensions of our food security by providing a benchmark assessment
for indicators for the mid-1990s, and a forward looking five-to-ten-year
projection; and, (iii) by signposting areas for more in-depth
investigation or research.
Does Defra have import/export statistics for different
food commodities from 2000 onwards? If so, could it supply them?
Yes, please see Annex A.
Could Defra supply an outline of what the Cabinet
Sub-Committee on Food has been working on since it was established?
Cabinet Office guidance has confirmed that it is
not possible to disclose information about the work of Cabinet
sub-committees.
20 https://statistics.defra.gov.uk/esg/reports/foodsecurity/ Back
21
Food Futures: Rethinking UK Strategy, Chatham House (2009) Back
22
Realising Britain's Potential: Future Strategic Challenges for
Britain, Cabinet Office (2008); http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/media/cabinetoffice/strategy/assets/strategic_challenges.pdf Back
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