§ Mr. Laurence RobertsonTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimate he has made of the percentage of food consumed in the United Kingdom which is organically grown; and what percentage of this food is grown(a) in the United Kingdom, (b) in the rest of the European Union and (c) in the rest of the world; and if he will make a statement. [67255]
§ Mr. Morley[holding answer 26 January 1999]: Sales of organic food accounted for 2 per cent. of UK food sales in 1997, the latest year for which data are available. It is estimated that imported organic produce accounted for around 70 per cent. of sales, of which the majority originated in the European Union.
My right hon. Friend the Minister recently re-affirmed this Government's support for the organic sector in a speech at the Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester. Funding for research and development is set to increase from £1.5 to £2.1 million in 1999–2000. More resources will be given to the Organic Conversion Information Service and payments to farmers wishing to convert to organic production methods will be almost doubled.