To coincide with the Food and Farming Summit hosted by Rishi Sunak in No.10 on Tuesday 14th May, the government has announced a blueprint to grow the UK fruit and vegetable sector in the UK.

This is welcomed by the UK Food Valley, which has the largest fresh produce sector of any area in the country, with 30% of vegetable and salad production, as well as nearly 20% of ornamental crops and major new investments in production, notably in high tech greenhouses, all sited here.

The UK Food Valley is also the centre and hub of UK fresh produce storage and logistics with UK and leading international supply chain companies clustered around Spalding and Boston.

The government blueprint for the fresh produce sector states that 'the sector is a vital part of the UK economy, worth £4.3 billion in 2022, with UK growers producing more than 3 million tonnes annually from over 300 different varieties of fruits and vegetables.  The broad nature of the sector sets it apart from other farming sectors, with various sub-sectors including orchards, field vegetables, soft fruits, glasshouses and vertical farms, all of which have unique issues when it comes to growing, harvesting, and marketing of products.

Our fresh produce sector is a key growth area. As highlighted by the Food Security Index, if we want to build our food security, we must go further in fruit, in which we only produce 17% of what we consume, and fresh vegetables at only 55%. This is significantly behind other products.

Through this blueprint, we want to boost the domestic production of fruit and vegetables, increasing horticultural output to become more self-sufficient and bolster our food security.'

Ruth Carver, Chief Executive of Greater Lincolnshire LEP, commented: “We welcome the recognition by Government that the fresh produce sector can grow sustainably to replace imports, something our LEP has campaigned strongly on.  In our 2021 investment prospectus for this sector, we argued that Greater Lincolnshire is the UK's Food Valley, the location of choice for fresh produce and controlled environment agriculture businesses investing to meet growing market demand, while pursuing transformational improvements in efficiency, productivity and sustainability.

"Since 2021, we have continued to see rapid investment in our fresh produce sector, and we have recently supported the University of Lincoln to develop a new R&D glasshouse at their Riseholme Campus to champion the development of energy and labour efficiency in this sector.  We have also commissioned research on how to modernise the cool chain which is integral to the fresh produce sector.

"We look forward to working with Government and all our partners in industry to deliver on the clear growth opportunities in the fresh produce sector.”

You can read the full blueprint here.