How secure is our food system?

The silver lining of this dark cloud is that shorter supply chains and building local connections – a large part of Speciality Food readers’ modus operandi – could play a valuable role in a secure food future.

We spoke to three experts on the ground to share their take on the current state of our nation’s food security and the challenges – and opportunities – to come.

Lucy Jones, director, The Cornish Food Box Company

The state of Britain’s food security is now firmly on the agenda at every level from concerned local communities through to our government and security services. Apart from the COVID years it is the first time most of us in this country has had to consider where the food on our plates is coming from, and increasingly whether next time we go food shopping it will be available to buy – or what the price will be.

Britain has a strong domestic food sector in many areas such as beef and dairy, but we have long been dependent on imports for other foods especially fruit and vegetables. We are increasingly exposed to climate change, extreme weather, global conflict, rising input costs and fragile international supply chains, which has led to the recent security assessment that we are at high risk from critical ecosystem collapse. Recent NFU analysis also suggests that self-sufficiency in many everyday foods has fallen over the past 30 years.

For me, greater food security doesn’t mean trying to produce everything ourselves. It means valuing, protecting and investing in our capacity to produce food here, while building a diverse and resilient supply chain. That creates both challenges and opportunities for SMEs. Smaller food businesses are being squeezed by rising employment, energy, and transport costs, without the buying power or margins of the major retailers. But our size can also be our strength. We can build direct relationships with farmers and producers, react quickly, shorten supply chains and connect customers much more closely with where their food comes from.

Tom Bradshaw, NFU president

From the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East to Brexit, the pandemic, increasing weather extremes including the worst drought in 50 years and the spread of the bluetongue virus throughout the livestock sector, the world has changed significantly in recent years. Our approach to food security must change with it.

We simply cannot rely on the rest of the world to feed us. Over the past 30 years, the UK’s self-sufficiency has fallen significantly in 10 of 11 key foods, while our reliance on imports has grown. Against a backdrop of increasing geopolitical uncertainty and the growing impacts of climate change, this paints a worrying picture.

British farmers and growers are facing a cashflow and confidence crisis with inflation driven by the Iran war and after a summer of relentless dry weather and drought, which resulted in a brutal harvest for many. Despite these pressures, we continue to work hard every day to produce food for 29 million households, deliver jobs and support rural communities, and we’re proud to do so. With the right support, we can do even more.

That means setting clear government targets for domestic food production, establishing core production standards that apply equally to food produced here and imports and delivering a planning system that enables growth and innovation for farm businesses.

Todd Redwood, global managing director of consumer, retail and food at BSI

If a Super El Niño event materialises, as many meteorologists predict, it could place already stretched global supply chains under even greater pressure. Businesses have faced a relentless series of disruptions throughout 2026, from shifting trade policies and ongoing geopolitical tensions to increasing climate-related events, and this latest threat could lead to higher costs, reduced product choice and shortages of some goods if organisations are not prepared.

Our research suggests many organisations are optimistic about their ability to withstand disruption over the coming year, but the foundations of resilience are often not yet in place. More than half describe their approach to risk management as reactive, while many lack formal, documented processes for managing supply chain risk. Without embedding stronger resilience, businesses may find themselves continuing to firefight challenges rather than staying ahead of them.

The research shows that many organisations expect disruption to drive higher costs, stockpiling and reduced product ranges. To avoid these impacts being felt by customers, organisations need to move beyond reactive crisis management and invest in proactive resilience. That means strengthening scenario planning, improving cross-functional coordination, increasing supply chain visibility, and ensuring leaders have the insight needed to make fast, informed decisions when disruption strikes.