Ecosystem collapse could leave UK unable to feed itself, Defra warns
The UK’s food supply could be put at risk by ecosystem collapse, with a new government report warning the country cannot rely on imports to feed itself in an increasingly volatile global landscape.
The findings come from a Defra analysis examining how global biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation could affect UK national security.
The report warns that, based on current diets and prices, the UK does not produce enough food to feed its population and remains heavily reliant on imports for both food and fertiliser.
It says that without significant improvements in domestic food system resilience and supply chains, the UK would struggle to maintain food security if ecosystem collapse intensified geopolitical competition for food.
Biodiversity loss, alongside climate change, is identified as one of the biggest medium- to long-term threats to domestic food production.
The report highlights depleted soils, declining pollinators, and increased drought and flooding as major risks facing UK farming.
According to the analysis, becoming fully self-sufficient would not be straightforward. It would require “substantial price increases” for consumers, alongside much greater investment in the agri-food sector to support innovation in sustainable production.
The National Farmers’ Union (NFU) said the report underlines the danger of over-reliance on overseas supplies in an unstable world.
NFU deputy president David Exwood said: “Food production and environmental delivery have always gone hand in hand – we cannot have a resilient food system without healthy soils, thriving pollinators and access to clean water.”
He described these as “vital resources” and said farmers and growers were committed to protecting them.
“As custodians of the land, farmers and growers have a responsibility and ambition to protect them. We now need the investment to enable it,” Mr Exwood said.
The report suggests some existing and emerging technologies could help mitigate the risks, pointing to plant pre-breeding and regenerative agriculture as potential solutions.
Mr Exwood said many farmers were looking to policy support to make that transition, noting that “thousands of farmers are looking to the renewed Sustainable Farming Incentive to enable this work”.
He warned that uncertainty around environmental schemes was holding progress back, saying farmers “desperately need some certainty for the scheme this year and for the years ahead”.
With global pressures growing, Mr Exwood said domestic resilience was becoming increasingly critical. “With an increasingly volatile geopolitical and climactic situation, we cannot rely on imports to sustain us,” he said.
He added that strengthening the UK’s food security must start at home, concluding: “Investing in our national food security has to be a priority, and that starts with investing in the land.”
