The effects of climate change are set to open up opportunities for UK growers, with the market for home-grown fruit and vegetables that are traditionally produced in hotter climates in for a boost, a new report has predicted.
The Feeding the Future study looks at the changing weather patterns to analyse how food should be grown and sold as climate change takes hold.
UK-grown asparagus, pak choi and lemons are just some of the products that could soon be more readily available in supermarket shelves, it said.
The research found that food grown in renewably powered glasshouses and labelled as a low-carbon product are some of the opportunities that the changing climate offers.
The report, which was commissioned by industry collaboration Farming Futures, features articles by Jonathon Porritt, founder director of Forum for the Future, and minister for sustainable food and farming Lord Jeff Rooker.
Lord Rooker, along with National Farmers’ Union president Peter Kendall, and Henry Aubrey-Fletcher, president of the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) ¬- both part of the Farming Futures collaboration - is keen for farming to be seen as part of the climate change solution.
He wrote: “While climate change poses threats to farming and food production, it also offers business opportunities.”
The report reveals how innovative farmers are making in-roads into the market by adapting to shifting weather patterns and growing crops better suited to water shortages, such as olives and sunflowers. The study also found that growers are saving money by adopting low-carbon farming techniques, such as using greener fuel for glasshouses, low-energy lighting and more efficient transport.
Porritt said: “What we are seeing now is only the start of the low-carbon revolution around the corner.”
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