Climate crisis: UK’s fruit and vegetables increasingly imported from environmentally vulnerable countries

The availability of fruit and vegetables grown in the UK is declining, with the country becoming increasingly reliant on imports from countries vulnerable to the climate crisis, scientists have warned.

A research team led by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), have called for a “radical rethink” of the UK’s trade strategies to ensure people continue to have access to fruit and vegetables - key components of a healthy diet.

The work used open-source data on food trade from 1987-2013, and revealed the domestic contribution to total fruit and vegetable supply in the UK collapsed from 42 per cent in 1987 to just 22 per cent by 2013.

Meanwhile, imports of fruit and vegetables from climate-vulnerable countries increased from 20 per cent in 1987 to 32 per cent in 2013.

The research team also found the variety of fruits and vegetables imported into the UK had increased by 2013, and that there have been major shifts in the types of fruits and vegetables supplied to the UK market.

Tropical fruits have grown in popularity while the supply of traditional vegetables has “significantly declined”, they said.

In 1987, 21 crops comprised the top 80 per cent of total fruit and vegetables supplied to the UK, and this rose to 27 in 2000 and 34 in 2013.

The supply of pineapples increased from 0.9 per cent to 1.4 per cent of overall fruit and vegetable supply, and bananas soared from accounting for 3 per cent to 7.8 per cent, by 2013.

Cabbages declined from 7.5 per cent in 1987 to just 2.5 per cent of overall fruit and vegetable supply, peas went down from 5 per cent to 1.3 per cent and carrots from 7 per cent to 5.8 per cent.

Given the projected trends in global climate change, the researchers said increased reliance on fruit and vegetable imports from climate-vulnerable countries could have a negative impact on the availability, price and consumption of fruit and vegetables in the UK, with low-income households worst affected.

Though fruit and vegetables are recognised as vital components of healthy diets, globally their consumption is well below current international dietary recommendations.

In England just 30 per cent of adults and 18 per cent of children eat the recommended five portions of fruit and/or vegetables a day.

Fruit and vegetables also typically have lower environmental footprints than animal sourced food and this dual contribution to health and sustainability is becoming increasingly recognised.

Dr Pauline Scheelbeek from LSHTM’s Centre on Climate Change & Planetary Health, who led the study, said: “The UK’s current trade patterns and climate change means the supply of fruit and vegetables in the UK is not secure. The recognition that trade is a key component of food system resilience is therefore vital information for policymakers.

“The increased reliance on fruit and vegetable imports from climate-vulnerable countries will, if no adequate climate change adaptation measures are taken in the production countries, lead to fruit and vegetable supply problems in the UK and potentially affect price and consumption of such foods. This could be a major challenge in our efforts to promote higher fruit and vegetable consumption in the UK, both for health and environmental reasons.”

Professor Alan Dangour, the director of the Centre on Climate Change & Planetary Health at LSHTM, said the government “cannot ignore” the findings, and must work to make vital food supply lines resilient to the systemic shocks the climate crisis could cause.

He said: “It is very clear from the underlying trends in food production and trade that the UK is increasingly reliant on climate-vulnerable countries for its supplies of fruit and vegetables. The government cannot ignore these trends or it will be failing in its primary duty to protect its people from future shocks.

“I call on the government to do more now to support national food production, build resilience into the national food system and ensure the supply of healthy and sustainable diets for all.”

The research team said the results are particularly important in the light of government- led programmes, such as the UK’s National Food Strategy, the National Determined Contributions of the UK, and the Obesity Strategy, as well as ongoing Brexit trade negotiations.

Dr Pauline Scheelbeek, a research fellow at the LSHTM said: “The implications of vulnerability of our trade strategy cuts across traditional policy silos such as diets, health, agriculture, economy and the environment. We need to rethink our trade strategy to reduce dependency on climate vulnerable countries, import responsibly and look into possibilities to enhance consumption of sustainably grown fruit and vegetables, including those produced in the UK.”

The research is published in Nature Food.