UK Industry Experts Call for National Strategy on Protected Horticulture to Boost Food Security

A coalition of horticulture experts and industry bodies in the UK has issued an open letter urging the Government to develop a national plan for protected horticulture, highlighting its crucial role in strengthening the country’s food security amid rising import dependence and climate risks.

The letter, backed by the Chartered Institute of Horticulture and other prominent sector groups, argues that modern, high-tech greenhouse production must be integrated into long-term national food and infrastructure planning to reduce supply vulnerability and create a more resilient domestic supply of fruit and vegetables.

Protected horticulture, including greenhouse systems, is presented as a proven strategy for enhancing the UK’s ability to produce year-round fresh produce, which currently faces disruption risks from geopolitical instability and climate change.

To achieve this, the letter calls on Whitehall departments — including DEFRA, DESNZ, HM Treasury, and the Department for Business and Trade — to adopt six coordinated actions:

• National planning frameworks for greenhouse expansion, aligned with energy infrastructure and spatial analysis.

  
  

• Shared cost structures between government, retailers and private investors for both capital and operating expenditure.

  
  

• Recognition of greenhouse horticulture as low-carbon infrastructure within energy and climate policy.

  
  

• Local authority support for co-locating greenhouses with renewables, district heating and waste-heat recovery.

  
  

• Balanced policy that harmonises food security goals with conservation and land-use priorities.

  
  

• Supermarket co-investment in long-term supply chain resilience and fairer contract terms, backed by government incentives and oversight.

The authors stress that close industry engagement will be essential to craft effective policy that reflects growers’ operational realities, calling on organisations such as the British Tomato Growers Association, NFU, British Growers Association, and the Greenhouse Innovation Consortium to help shape the implementation.

The letter underlines that while protected cropping alone won’t solve all food system challenges, it represents one of the most effective tools for building resilience, improving self-sufficiency, and supporting sustainable, high-quality domestic production.

Read more here.