Urgent investment needed to upskill workforce says Lantra

The UK must urgently invest in land-based skills or risk a further decline in food security and greater reliance on imported food, according to sector training body Lantra.

New research from the organisation highlights growing workforce shortages across agriculture, horticulture, aquaculture, forestry and environmental land management, warning that a lack of skilled workers could undermine domestic food production and rural economies.

The land-based sector manages more than 80% of the UK’s land, contributes an estimated £41bn in annual societal value and supports almost 453,000 jobs.

See also: Food security overhaul urged as volatility is ‘new norm’

Farming, horticulture and aquaculture also underpin a wider agri-food supply chain worth 6% of the UK economy and supporting 4.2 million jobs.

However, Lantra said skills provision has failed to keep pace with industry needs.

Data from Skills England shows around six in 10 land-based occupations are now classed as high-demand roles.

Food resilience concern

The warning comes as concerns grow over the UK’s food resilience.

The country currently produces about 65% of the food it consumes domestically, while food imports reached £64bn in 2024. The UK’s food trade deficit has increased by 20% since 2005.

Lantra says strengthening domestic food supply chains will require a workforce equipped with the skills needed to meet future production, environmental and technological challenges.

Nick Juba, Lantra chief executive, said: “Without a unified, coordinated strategy that recognises the land-based sector as a key pillar of its national skills strategy, the UK risks damaging its food security and failing to unlock its full economic potential.

“Investing in skills now is about safeguarding capacity, raising standards and ensuring the workforce can deliver against national priorities.”

Lantra argues that land-based skills have often been overlooked in national training and economic policy because of funding shortages, limited political representation and poor alignment between government ambitions and training resources.