Month: February 2020

The Organic Research Centre (ORC) is delighted to announce the appointment of Nuffield Scholar Lucy MacLennan as its new CEO. ...

Internship of a lifetime for young horts

Every year the David Colegrave Foundation (DCF) and the American Floral Endowment (AFE), jointly award an internship of a lifetime ...

NFU urges Government to be global leader of climate-friendly food

NFU President Minette Batters will today urge the Government to commit to introducing a food standards commission that scrutinises future ...

CambridgeHOK appoints Patrick Harte to support investors

CambridgeHOK has announced a new appointment as it seeks to meet the increasing demands from investors looking to fund glasshouse ...

Farmers celebrate British wine production on the eve of Oxford conferences

Farmers raised a glass to British wine production on the eve of the Oxford conferences in a debate with Innovative Farmers that brought ...

Alternatives to plastic may be worse for the environment

A new report from Green Alliance has warned that knee-jerk moves to remove plastic packaging could actually mean adopting solutions ...

Despite political uncertainties caused by Brexit and the General Election, the UK’s food and drink sector has showed positive growth according to a new report from trade body Make UK and Santander. The report confirms that food and drink is the largest manufacturing sector in the UK, although the country still imports twice as much food and drink as it exports. According to the report the sector is worth 15.9% of total manufacturing GVA with sales in 2018 of £85.6 billion, a sharp increase of 7.6% in just two years from 2016. As a result, the sector is now a major employer across the UK with some 440,000 employees, up 5.3 per cent since 2016 and now at the highest level for fifteen years. A large element of this growth has come from overseas, with sales abroad up by just under one quarter in the last two years alone. The EU remains the biggest total market accounting for just under two thirds (61 per cent) of exports worth £13.9 billion, with Ireland the largest single destination (21.4 per cent worth £4.2 billion) closely followed by The Netherlands, France, the USA and Germany. However, the Rest of the World is seeing significant growth. Make UK Chief Economist, Seamus Nevin, said, “The food and drink sector continues to benefit from British public’s desire to eat, drink and be merry. Despite the economic and political uncertainty, the sector seems to be shielded from the difficulties experienced elsewhere and is driving hard for growth in the UK and overseas. It is now a key contributor not just to manufacturing but a significant employer in many regions of the UK.” Photo Caption: Seamus Nevin of Make UK Photo credit: YouTube

UK Food sector grows despite uncertainty

Despite political uncertainties caused by Brexit and the General Election, the UK’s food and drink sector has showed positive growth ...

New solar panels for Berry Gardens

Fruit supplier Berry Gardens has installed almost 1 MW of solar panels on the roof of its new office and ...

‘Organic wounds’ improve fruit and veg