The path to food self-sufficiency will not be easy but it is possible. By restructuring land use, rethinking diet, embracing technology, and eliminating waste, some research shows that England can produce 80% plus of its needs domestically even if cut off from the global market. Lets look at some ideas:-
1. Land Use Rebalancing
Some ideas highlight that land must be reallocated from low-efficiency livestock farming to high-yield plant crops. Here’s how:
- 5 million hectares used for mixed crops (wheat, potatoes, pulses, vegetables) can yield 20+ trillion kcal/year, which is nearly half of England’s needs.
- Prioritise staple crops:
- Wheat:
- Potatoes:
- Pulses (e.g., lentils/peas):
- Vegetables:
A diversified cropping system ensures nutritional balance and resilience to pests, weather, and market shocks.
2. Rethink livestock use, More Plants?
- Beef is land and water intensive, offering minimal return in calories intake. It is estimated that it takes 15,000 litres of water to produce 1 kg of beef.
- Shift to poultry, eggs, aquaculture*, and plant-based proteins (like legumes, nuts, and even insects).
- Maintain some livestock using regenerative grazing, silvopasture**, or rotational systems focusing on land unsuitable for cropping.
3. Urban and Vertical Farming
- England has ~500,000 hectares of urban land. Converting just 1% (~5,000 ha) into vertical farms could provide fresh vegetables for 15 million people year-round.
- High-efficiency vertical farms* use:
- 90% less water
- No pesticides
- Up to 20x yield per square metre compared to conventional farming
Rooftops, basements, and industrial parks can become food production centres in an urban network.
(*Vertical farming is a means of growing food that uses vertical surfaces as opposed to traditional, horizontal farming. This usually takes place in skyscrapers, warehouses, shipping containers, greenhouses or other indoor facilities.)
4. Slash Food Waste
Tackling food waste is essential for food security:
- Recovering just 50% of the UK’s 9.5 million tonnes of annual food waste could feed over 20 million people.
- Implement:
- Smart logistics and cold chains
- Retail reforms (sell-by date transparency)
- Public campaigns and education
- Surplus redistribution networks
Waste reduction is an immediate way to boost food availability without adding land or inputs.
5. Change the way eat / dietary intake
There is so many different approaches to this that I can only highlight one idea:
- <98g of red meat/week
- >200g of vegetables/day
- More legumes, grains, and fruit
- Less processed food and sugar
If even half the population adopts this diet, England could:
- Reduce land pressure by millions of hectares
- Improve national health, reducing NHS burden
This is not about going vegan, it’s about reducing excess and maximising efficiency.
6. Resilience through Policy and Innovation
A food-resilient England needs bold leadership and investment in:
- Agri-tech: Robotics, AI, drones, and precision farming.
- Local food systems: Farmer’s markets, regional hubs, co-ops.
- Seed sovereignty: Preserve diverse, climate-resilient seeds.
- Resilience planning: Strategic food reserves and domestic processing capacity.
- Public education: Nutrition, seasonality, and cooking skills.
These measures require upfront costs but the alternative is to continue to rely on cheap imports.
In conclusion:
England would currently struggle to feed itself as things stand as the reliance on cheap imports to far too high. But with:
- Better land use
- changing livestock approaches
- More vegetables and grains
- Less waste
- Urban farming
- Technological innovation
- England with the correct political will can absolutely can close the gap, strengthen national resilience, and model a sustainable food future.
Stephen Morris, General Secretary of the workers of England Union summed it up well when he said
“We have the land. We have the knowledge. We must find the urgency.
What is missing is the political will and the public understanding to demand it. The WEU is a Trade Union connected to the communities and members it represents and it will campaign for England being able to feed itself. This means that Supermarkets must be encouraged, if not willing, then, forced to buy local produce first”.