Britain’s food production is coming under mounting pressure as drought, extreme heat and a growing number of wildfires threaten harvests across the country — reinforcing industry warnings that the UK must protect its ability to source affordable fresh produce from around the world. Half of England has now been officially declared in drought following exceptionally low rainfall and prolonged high temperatures. Farmers are harvesting crops early, yields are expected to fall and

Paranova Print and Packaging is investing £20 million in a major expansion of its fibre-based packaging operations, including a new production facility designed to meet rising demand from the fresh produce, convenience and food-to-go sectors. The five-year investment programme begins with £6 million being channelled into a purpose-built paperboard facility in Godmanchester, Cambridgeshire. Scheduled to become operational in early November, it will be Paranova’s fourth and lar

Waitrose is developing refrigeration technology capable of operating in temperatures of up to 48°C as increasingly intense summer heat places greater pressure on supermarket infrastructure. The John Lewis Partnership-owned grocer is preparing its stores for a hotter climate with advanced systems combining heat-pump technology and refrigeration to keep chilled products at the correct temperature during periods of extreme heat. While development of the new equipment continues,

Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s pledge to lead a “cost-of-living Government” has run into an immediate fiscal warning, with one of Britain’s leading economic think tanks arguing that new support must be funded through higher taxes or spending cuts rather than additional borrowing. The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) said the Government faced increasingly difficult choices as the economic consequences of the Iran war continued to feed through energy pr

Indian billionaire Gautam Adani is considering a bid for Associated British Ports in a move that could give his infrastructure empire control of one of the most important gateways in Britain’s logistics network. The proposed deal would mark Adani’s first investment in the UK and significantly extend the international reach of his ports business, which already has operations in India, Israel, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Australia. According to the Financial Times, Adani is explori

The NFU has called for immediate action to strengthen water resilience as drought conditions spread across half of England, placing growing pressure on farmers, fresh produce growers and the nation’s food supply. Seven areas have now been officially declared in drought: East Anglia; Hertfordshire and the whole of London; the Thames Valley; Hampshire and the Isle of Wight; Devon and Cornwall; the West Midlands; and Wessex, covering Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire and South Glouces

Morrisons has become the first UK retailer to introduce Instacart’s AI-powered Caper smart trolleys, launching the technology as an in-store trial at its Preston supermarket. The move marks North American grocery technology specialist Instacart’s first UK retail partnership for the trolleys, which are designed to bring some of the convenience and personalisation of online shopping into the supermarket aisle. According to Retail Week, the technology enables customers to keep t

Britain’s leading food redistribution organisations have agreed a new shared framework designed to treble the amount of surplus food reaching communities over the next decade. The initiative brings together charities and social enterprises including the newly merged FareShare and The Felix Project, City Harvest, The Bread and Butter Thing, Community Shop, Feeding Britain, His Church, Neighbourly, Trussell and the Xcess Network. According to Fresh Produce Journal, the organisa

Five of the UK’s most experienced commercial apple growers are joining forces to share the practical methods they use to improve harvest efficiency, protect fruit quality and manage increasingly complex workforce demands. The British Apples & Pears Limited Smart Orchard Harvest Optimisation Grower Workshop, taking place on 31 July, will bring together representatives from five leading fruit businesses for an open discussion covering every stage of harvest planning and deliver

Lidl GB has joined forces with budget chef Miguel Barclay to launch seven £1 recipes designed to demonstrate that eating a more balanced and sustainable diet need not come with a higher grocery bill. The new “Planet Plate” collection uses affordable ingredients available from Lidl stores and draws inspiration from the Planetary Health Diet, which was developed by scientists to support both human health and the environment. The recipes encourage shoppers to make manageable cha

A new United Nations report has found that the EU's own farm subsidy system has driven up the price of fruit and vegetables, making healthy diets harder to afford across Europe. The Fresh Produce Consortium (FPC) says the finding lands at exactly the wrong moment for the UK-EU Reset — which would layer EU-style border checks onto Rest of World fresh produce, adding cost and friction to the very foods the UN says Europe most needs to make cheaper. According to the FAO's annual

Evidence suggests the nutrient content of some staple crops has declined over recent decades, prompting researchers to investigate whether regenerative farming could help reverse the trend. The food on our plates may not deliver the same nutritional value it once did, with historical data pointing to substantial declines in certain vitamins and minerals across several widely consumed crops. Figures cited in a new Guardian investigation suggest that, by the late 1990s, the vit

Waitrose is preparing to expand a new medium-sized store format designed to bridge the gap between its full supermarkets and smaller convenience shops. The retailer is reportedly seeking locations across the UK for its new “neighbourhood” stores, which will place a strong emphasis on fresh food, larger bakery sections and ingredients for cooking at home. At approximately 7,000 sq ft, the shops will be significantly larger than a typical Little Waitrose convenience store, whic

Sainsbury’s has inked two 10-year supply agreements with UK growers Evesham Vale Growers and Thanet Earth as part of a strategy to increase the availability of British-grown tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers, while strengthening resilience across its salad vegetable supply chain. Image: Sainsbury's The retailer said the long-term partnerships are designed to support investment in domestic production at a time when climate-related disruption is increasing pressure on imported s

News of the 20% reduction in business rates for pubs, clubs, and live music venues has been met with calls for wider, more ambitious business reform to support the UK’s entire hospitality sector. The rate cut for pubs, clubs, and live music venues, which is set to take effect from next April, will benefit nearly 32,000 businesses across England, according to the government. Prime Minster Andy Burnham said the measure will translate into estimated annual savings of £1,100 for

A new £5.1 million research project will explore how artificial intelligence (AI), video games, and young farmer ambassadors could help attract more young people into agricultural careers. Image: James Hutton Institute Led by the James Hutton Institute, the Farm Heroes initiative aims to tackle one of the sector’s most pressing long-term challenges: recruiting and retaining the next generation of farmers. The four-year project, which launches in October, will investigate how

In one of the first industry interventions of Andy Burnham’s premiership, the Fresh Produce Consortium (FPC) has written to the Prime Minister today urging him to make fresh produce part of his cost-of-living fight — by scrapping an avoidable plan that would add more than £300 million a year to the cost of the fruit, vegetables and flowers Britain imports from beyond Europe. At issue is the UK–EU Reset. As drafted, it would impose EU-style border controls on Rest of World fre

Growers are warning that the coming weeks will be crucial in determining the outlook for this season's harvest with the prolonged spell of hot, dry weather continuing to put pressure on UK food production. Domestic food shortages could hit supermarkets within the next 10 days as the recent extreme weather pushes some areas of the country close to drought, reports The Independent. “Some areas haven’t harvested yet so what happens over the next week to 10 days could have an im

A new collaborative project bringing together growers, researchers, agronomists, and agritech specialists aims to improve pest monitoring in UK onion and brassica crops through artificial intelligence, smart trapping technology, and real-time data analysis. Image: University of Warwick The grower-led initiative, known as TRACER-Pest, has been established to address one of the fresh produce sector’s ongoing production challenges: identifying economically damaging pest populat

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has placed the cost of living at the centre of his new government’s priorities, promising action to help families afford everyday essentials — including good, healthy food. According to The Guardian, Burnham instructed ministers at the first meeting of his new Cabinet to explore “all possible ways” of reducing pressure on household finances. The move offers renewed hope that families facing difficult choices at the checkout could receive meaningful