Import of fruits and vegetables from climate-vulnerable countries for the UK is rising.

The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) have made a research based on analysis of open-source data on food trade from 1987 to 2013. The research has shown that the domestic contribution to total fruit and vegetable supply in the UK has dropped from 42 percent in 1987 to 22 percent in 2013, while at the same time imports of fruit and vegetables from climate-vulnerable countries have risen from 20 percent in 1987 to 32 percent in 2013.

 

The diversity of fruit and vegetable supply has increased. In 1987, 21 crops constituted the top 80% of all fruit and vegetables supplied to the UK; in 2013, it was 34 crops. The contribution of tropical fruits has rapidly increased

 

“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 " says Dr Pauline Scheelbeek from LSHTM’s Centre on Climate Change & Planetary Health.

 

Globally the consumption of fruit and vegetables is well below dietary recommendations. Only 30 percent of adults and 18 percent of children eat the recommended five portions of fruit and/or vegetables per day in England.

 

Professor Alan Dangour, Director of the Centre on Climate Change & Planetary Health at LSHTM, says: “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 bethe UK is incre 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.”