Defra response to Lords horticulture report ‘inadequate’ – NFU

Defra’s response to the House of Lords horticulture inquiry does not adequately address the challenges facing the sector, the NFU has said.

Following its inquiry into the horticulture sector, the House of Lords Horticulture Sector committee published a report in November 2023, which included 93 recommendations for government to safeguard the future of the sector and deliver critical food security and environmental goals.

These included the need for the government to make good on its promise to publish a horticulture strategy for England, investment in job creation, a review of the seasonal worker visa route, and a review of the R&D landscape to support innovation.

See also: Ditching of English horticulture strategy ‘beggars belief’

The Lords committee was particularly damning of the role of supermarkets, whose loss-leader pricing strategies squeeze fruit and veg growers and prioritise cheaper imports over UK-grown produce.

The committee said the government “must urgently conduct and publish its review of fairness in the supply chain”.

The NFU said the horticulture sector was facing its third year of unprecedented and highly volatile costs of production, together with supply chains that return little value back to growers.

Defra published its response to the Lords’ report on Monday 12 February.

The NFU said many of the recommendations were dismissed by the government and it described the response as a “missed opportunity” for the sector.

This is despite the horticulture sector being earmarked by Rishi Sunak at his Downing Street Farm to Fork summit last May as an area for growth, and a promise of a Horticulture Strategy within the government’s own Food Strategy, published in 2022.

NFU horticulture and potatoes board chairman Martin Emmett said: “The British horticulture sector is worth £5bn to the UK economy, yet despite its own ambitions, much of the government’s response seems to have missed the opportunity to grow the British horticulture sector.

“Having experienced shortages of some of the nation’s favourite fruit and vegetables in the past 12 months, and with ongoing global instability, our supply chain is fragile.

“We shouldn’t rely on imports to feed the nation. Instead, we need government to match its own ambitions for the sector, alongside supporting our ornamental plant and flower businesses to achieve their environmental and biosecurity objectives.”

Risk and reward dilemma

Mr Emmett said the government must give British growers certainty by having a consistent plan for seasonal labour, including a five-year rolling seasonal workers scheme, as well as sustainable returns and longer-term contracts with their key customers, the retailers and processors.

The NFU also highlighted a recent Promar report it commissioned, which showed low prices are having a direct impact on fruit and veg growers, with many business owners thinking about cutting production this season.

“The risk and lack of reward is simply too high,” said Mr Emmett.