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United Kingdom Food Security Digest 2025
The Food Security Digest is an analysis of current statistical data relating to food security in the UK. It also examines this in the context of past trends likely to be relevant to UK food security.
Food security
While there are many definitions of food security, the UKFSD uses the widely used 1996 World Food Summit definition which defines food security in broad terms as:
“when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.”
This definition encompasses the many interacting factors that exist within complex food systems. These factors are complex and multi-faceted. Food security therefore cannot be reduced to a single metric or concept.
There are many lenses with which to view food security. At the global level, issues such as climate, weather events, conflict and shocks to international trade are relevant. National resilience will focus more on factors such as domestic production, sources of imports and supply chain resilience. For individuals, however, food security is about the accessibility and affordability of food, being able to provide a nutritious and sufficient diet for your household and having confidence that the food you buy is safe. The UKFSR covers these viewpoints via five thematic sections. As per the Digest design principles (see above), we have not attempted to give equal weight to each theme in the content of this publication, rather focusing on content that illustrates changes since the last publication; the UKFSR offers far wider examples of the issues pertinent to each theme.
Events in 2025
Below is a non-exhaustive summary of events since the publication of the UKFSR 2024 which relate in some way to food security, from a local to a global scale.
| Month | Event |
|---|---|
| January | The port of Holyhead reopened after five weeks closure following damage caused by incidents during Storm Darragh. The port did not fully reopen until July. Between 5% and 10% of annual UK meat and dairy imports usually come through the port. |
| March | Reports from wholesale markets suggested that bananas were in short supply. This was due to the increase of Panama disease, industrial action around the Panama Canal and rough seas delaying vessels. As delayed vessels arrived there were further delays as the ripening rooms coped with the backlog. There were some floods and flash flooding in Spain - Murcia and Andalusia in particular. A cold snap and wet weather prompted some wider concerns around supply of salad lines including tomatoes and sweet peppers. Broccoli from Spain was in short supply for several weeks. |
| April | Two high street food retailers, Marks and Spencer and the Co-op, were impacted by cyber attacks. There were short-lived but large-scale power outages causing blackouts across the Iberian Peninsula. Power was quickly restored, but it served as a reminder that such major events can happen. Official government advice on preparing for emergencies (including emergency food supplies) is available at Prepare. |
| May | Due to the viral trend for Dubai Chocolate, there were global supply shortages of pistachios. Prices increased, and it can take several years for pistachio trees to mature. California is a major producer, but production was down 26% following earlier wildfires. |
| June | 40% of mainland Europe was in drought (Greece, Southern Italy, Spain). There was some concern about the wheat crop in Spain and Portugal if the heat continued. Central Europe has been hit the hardest by drought and floods (especially France). In Ukraine hot weather was just one of many factors affecting wheat production. 10% of their land was occupied or part of the front lines and energy and labour were hard to come by, which meant that they were already producing less than pre-war. Weather was an added stressor. |
| August | Food price inflation reached 5.1%, 1.3% higher than overall inflation and its highest level since February 2024. |
| September | September rainfall was not enough to undo the impact of drought in the UK. Winter feed was used during summer in some cases due to poor grass growth for grazing. Most crops were harvested at that point, however there were some concerns regarding root crops as irrigation is required to lift them where ground is dry. |
| November | Mandatory housing measures for poultry in Great Britain were introduced to reduce the risk of incursion of Avian Influenza. |
Individual events or factors rarely have a quantifiable impact on food security, as it cannot be fully captured by statistics alone. However key contextual factors do combine to influence food security as viewed at differing scales:
People. In the UK, the cost of living and affordability of food remained a notable household concern, with food price inflation being higher than general inflation for most of the year. The Family Resources Survey reported increased household food insecurity and food bank usage. The increasing cost of a cup of coffee encapsulated how global commodity prices affected prices at home.
Businesses. The UKFSR 2024 described how the Russian invasion of Ukraine caused a spike in energy and agri-food input costs which impacted food prices and business uncertainty. Food chain inputs, such as labour and energy are all key to food production and the resilience of the supply chain to such shocks is a key element of UK national food security. In 2025, high profile cyber attacks on high street retailers highlighted the importance of food as part of the UK Critical National Infrastructure.
International. Global food supply and the sustainability of global food production are of key importance for UK food supply, as well as strong domestic production. Geopolitical tensions and conflict continue to affect shipping routes, and trade policy uncertainty in the last year has the potential to impact on food. Commodity prices for staple ingredients are important factors affecting UK food prices, whilst animal and plant health and wider climate issues also remain of importance.
You can read the full digest below.
Source: UK Government: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/united-kingdom-food-security-digest-2025/united-kingdom-food-security-digest-2025
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