UK food giants urge food security priority

A coalition of major UK food industry players including Tesco, Danone, Sainsbury s, Aldi, John Lewis Partnership — Waitrose, and The Co-operative Group, along with charities such as Barnardo s, Amnesty International, World Wildlife Fund, and The Food Foundation, has signed a letter urging Prime Minister Andy Burnham to make food security a national priority alongside energy and defence. The letter warns that the next 'food shock' is inevitable and calls for the urgent introduction of a Good Food Bill to create a legally binding framework for improving national food and nutrition security, public health, and food system resilience. It highlights that British fruit and vegetable production has fallen 16% since 2015, with 78% of supply now imported, and that food insecurity already affects 15% of households with children. The coalition argues that rising fertiliser costs due to international conflict and extreme weather events are making harvests vulnerable, and that UK food prices are on track to be 50% higher by November compared to mid-2021 levels. Executives from Sainsbury s, Danone, and The Food Foundation have publicly supported the call, emphasizing the need for long-term government commitment to build a resilient food system.