Consumer concerns about climate change and food provenance are set to bring further opportunities for the farming and food industry, but farmers must work together to take advantage, says English Farming and Food Partnerships (EFFP).

Speaking at EFFP’s annual conference in London this week, chief executive Sion Roberts said expenditure on niche markets such as organic, regionally produced and added-value foods had increased dramatically.

Farmer-controlled businesses would allow producers to take advantage of a trend that is predicted to grow further, he added. “Local and regional food could become 10% of the overall food market by 2020. The link between food and the farm has become increasingly important and I don’t think this trend will stop.”

Mr Roberts said the food industry was likely to become more segmented as people bought into different categories such as organic or regionally branded produce. “Provenance is a big trend for the future with more and more retailers and manufacturers showing an interest in sourcing 100% British food.”

In future there would be other categories like “low-carbon” foods which would address climate change issues, he added. “But the key thing is they all have something to do with where food comes from and how it is produced.”

Mr Roberts said that with reduced global food stocks, increased demand and reduced security of food supplies across the world, British farmers could seize the opportunity to work collectively to ensure consumer demand was met.

“The key to this is through farmer controlled businesses and supply groups. FCBs are used across the world as a mechanism for farmers to work together but in the UK we are lagging behind. Across Europe FCBs are between five and ten times bigger than in the UK”

“There is an important role for local produce”

Andrew Cooksey, Dairy Farmers of Britain chief executive, agreed FCBs had a big future in the UK. “There is an important role for local produce,” he said.

“The marketplace is demanding to know about food provenance and FCBs are the best businesses to deliver a connection between farmers, retailers and consumers,” he said.

Junior DEFRA minister Lord Rooker endorsed this view. “People are prepared to pay for niche products so farmers need to meet growing demand for this in a sustainable way.”