The UK is no longer the key target market for producers around the world, and is now having to compete with other nations to procure produce, according to Michael Velasco, president of the Fresh Produce Consortium (FPC).
“Europe is growing, and economies which didn’t consume fresh produce out of season are now becoming big consumers,” he said.
The carbon footprint and its incumbent issues is a hard-hitting reality, Velasco explained, and the publicity generated by the media and the retailers with regard to this topic is impossible to ignore. “Some of these issues may not seem sexy, and to some of us, they may seem a little over-egged, but getting to grips with them will be the key to the way this industry’s success or failure is measured by consumers in the future - we cannot afford to ignore them.
“As John F Kennedy would no doubt have said if he had been president of the FPC, and not the US, ask not what the climate is doing for you - ask what you can do for your climate.”
Velasco also highlighted the growth of foodservice, further consolidation of the sector and an increasing consumer interest in healthy eating as significant impacts on the industry over the last 12 months.
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