In an age of increasing global instability, Britain’s food security is becoming more precarious. With global events, such as political unrest and environmental disasters, threatening the stability of food supplies, the UK government’s lack of a clear strategy is raising alarms.
In an effort to safeguard against potential food shortages, I have recently started stockpiling food. Over the past month, I’ve accumulated supplies including 25kg of rice, 15kg of dried chickpeas, 15kg of bread flour, and several other essentials, amounting to roughly two months’ worth of provisions for my family. While I hope the need to rely on these supplies never arises, I see this as a proactive, community-focused measure to reduce demand during a crisis. Ideally, local stockpiling and resilience planning would be the way forward, but given the government’s inaction, I’ve taken steps to prepare myself.
In researching my book Regenesis, I uncovered the UK’s deep dependence on global food imports, particularly from the United States. More than 60% of the calories produced globally come from just four commodities: wheat, rice, maize, and soya beans, with the US being a major exporter. While the likelihood of a deliberate disruption in food supply from the US is low, the unpredictable actions of political figures like Donald Trump have made such disruptions more likely. Factors such as military attacks, software failures, and the collapse of massive food corporations pose significant risks to the global food system.
Additionally, climate change is already showing signs of disrupting food production. The “whiplash effect” of alternating droughts and floods threatens to cause synchronized crop failures in critical growing regions. This has already sparked warnings from the scientific community, with experts drawing parallels to the global financial system’s vulnerabilities before the 2008 crash. Many of the same structural issues that led to the 2008 crisis—such as a loss of diversity and resilience in the global food system—are now being observed in food markets, increasing the risk of a major collapse.
Some nations, including China, Japan, and Switzerland, have responded to these risks by investing in grain stockpiles to buffer against price spikes and supply interruptions. However, when I asked the UK government whether it holds strategic food reserves, I received no response. When pressed, the government cited national security concerns—a vague and insufficient excuse. While governments like China are transparent about their reserves, the UK continues to avoid addressing the issue, creating a dangerous void in public trust.
The National Preparedness Commission, in a recent report on UK food security, criticized the government’s failure to develop a comprehensive food security strategy. Successive administrations have neglected the issue, relying instead on the private sector’s fragile just-in-time logistics, which expose the country to severe risks in times of crisis.
While food reserves are essential, they are not enough to ensure long-term resilience. The UK produces a significant amount of grain, but much of it is used for animal feed rather than human consumption. The strict cosmetic standards imposed by supermarkets and food processors also limit the available supply of edible food. Relaxing these standards could increase the amount of food available for human consumption. Additionally, a shift toward a plant-based diet could greatly reduce land use, as current farming practices devote the majority of UK farmland to livestock.
A strategic reduction in livestock consumption would not only help secure food system resilience but also benefit the environment, particularly by rewilding less productive uplands. Furthermore, innovations like precision fermentation could help reduce the UK’s reliance on both food and fertilizer imports, improving self-sufficiency.
However, resilience should not come at the cost of increased dependency on fertilizers, which the UK heavily imports. A better understanding of soil biology and investing in sustainable agricultural practices could reduce the need for chemical inputs, a field that remains woefully underfunded.
The government must also break up corporate monopolies that dominate the food sector. Stronger anti-trust laws and weaker intellectual property protections could help increase competition and innovation. Governments should also take a more active role in involving citizens in food security decision-making, as Taiwan has done during its own crises.
Ultimately, the government’s failure to prepare leaves us vulnerable. While I, along with some of my neighbors, have taken personal steps to safeguard our families, the truth is that no one can be secure until everyone is secure. Food security should not be a matter of individual action, but a collective effort. It shouldn’t have to come to this.
Until the government takes the necessary steps to ensure that every citizen is protected, the fear of food shortages will remain a looming threat, and our individual stockpiles will serve as a reminder of the system’s failure to act.
Related topics
