§ Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domerasked Her Majesty's Government:
What grants Food from Britain has received in the last three years; and what proportion of the foods promoted by it are (a) processed foods; (b) high in sugar, salt and fat; and (c) contain artificial additives. [HL4260]
§ Lord WhittyFood from Britain has received the following grants during the past three financial years:
Year Defra Other 2001–02 £7,868,0001 £300,000—Countryside Agency 2002–03 £5,868,0002 £300,000—Countryside Agency 2003–04 £6,368,0003 — 1 Includes £2,500,000 for work in relation to foot and mouth recovery. 2 Includes £500,000 for work in relation to foot and mouth recovery. 3 Includes £1,260,000 for work to support the development of the quality regional food and drink sector. All UK exporters need to ensure that their individual products comply with the prevailing product ingredient and labelling requirements of the markets they wish to export to.
Food From Britain's role is to maximise exports of food and drink produced or processed in the UK and to increase production and consumption of quality regional food. Its export services are available to all UK companies and consist of a range of tailored business development and information services such as market assessment reports, trade missions and support at international food and drink exhibitions. Support for the quality regional food sector consists of a programme of activities focusing on trade development, increasing competitiveness and raising consumer awareness. In both cases, FFB's support is provided to the company or producer rather than for individual products. FFB does not, therefore, keep detailed records or make assessments of the individual 44WA products promoted by the companies or producers it supports.
A Department of Health consultation Choosing Health? Choosing a Better Diet on priorities for a food and health action plan held earlier this year listed the reduction of salt, saturated fat and sugar in diets as nutritional priorities for the population of England as a whole. The consultation invited the views of individuals, organisations and industry on the actions we need to take to improve the balance of the national diet. This will result in benefits to consumer choice whether food is consumed domestically or following export.
§ Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domerasked Her Majesty's Government:
How the Regional and Local Food Unit of the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs is supporting (a) farmers' markets; and (b) the National Farmers' Retail and Markets Association's accreditation scheme. [HL4262]
§ Lord Whitty(a) Officials from Defra's Regional and Local Food Unit met representatives from the National Farmers' Retail and Markets Association (FARMA) on 12 July 2004. The purpose of this meeting was to explore how Defra can work with FARMA on the common goals of reconnecting farmers to their markets and helping them to add value. The meeting included a discussion on FAR MA's priorities and how projects to take these forward might be supported under various grant schemes—in particular the rural enterprise scheme (RES) and the agriculture development scheme (ADS). Farmers' markets at both a regional and national level have received funding under those schemes in the past. Most recently, an award of £100,256 to the National Association of Farmers' Markets (NAFM), now FARMA, was made in April 2003 to raise the profile of farmers' markets across England and to increase public awareness of them. The meeting also covered how FARMA could raise its profile with the regional development agencies (RDAs). As a result representatives from FARMA have been invited to give a presentation to Defra's regional food cross-cutting group, which includes representatives from the RDAs, the Countryside Agency and the Food Standards Agency, at the end of this month.
(b) At the meeting on 12 July, FARMA's accreditation scheme was identified as a key priority for the new organisation. Defra has already provided £24,364 to NAFM to help it to develop the certification scheme for accrediting farmers' markets. The scheme is an important factor in preserving the integrity of and, therefore, consumers' confidence in, farmers' markets. Any further request from FARMA for funding to address this issue would be considered in the same way as any other application for grant.
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§ Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domerasked Her Majesty's Government:
How the Regional and Local Food Unit of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is supporting Food Links UK, the national body of Local Food Links, and their work to promote best practice in schemes that raise the consumption of fresh British produce. [HL4263]
§ Lord WhittyDefra's Regional and Local Food Unit is working with colleagues elsewhere in the department in taking forward a number of initiatives in support of the work that Food Links UK is doing to encourage the consumption of fresh British produce. These include:
Funding a range of projects through our various grant schemes which are helping producers to develop their processing facilities, find new outlets for their produce and reconnect with consumers. For example, a project in Somerset aimed at developing new markets for local produce by establishing links with local businesses in the retail, catering and tourism sectors;
Our public sector food procurement initiative, which is designed to encourage public sector bodies to procure their food in a manner that promotes sustainable development and encourages more small and local farmers, producers and suppliers to compete to supply them with food. Activities include regional pilot projects on developing local supply chains;
Our organic action plan which aims to increase British farmers' share of the organic market; and
The programme of activities being taken forward by Food from Britain under our regional food strategy aimed at helping quality regional food producers to become more competitive and raising consumer awareness. Examples of such activities include the forthcoming best practice guide on distribution and the strengthening of links between regional food and tourism.
§ Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domerasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they intend to act on the recommendation in the Gershon review of "improving purchasing arrangements: centralised negotiation of bulk deals"; and, if so, how that will help to deliver the objective of the sustainable food procurement initiative to increase tenders from small and local producers. [HL4264]
§ Lord WhittyPublic procurement is based on value for money, defined as the optimum combination of whole-life cost and quality to meet the user's requirement. Strengthening sustainability considerations in public procurement provides an opportunity to drive up standards and to achieve social and environmental as well as economic objectives consistent with public procurement policy. In accordance with the recommendations in Sir Peter Gerson's report, the Government will be seeking deals46WA at national, regional and local levels depending on which is most appropriate. In working to achieve those deals we will take account of our policies on sustainable procurement and the participation of small and medium-sized enterprises in public sector contracts.
Defra is implementing category management as its preferred delivery mechanism for the contracting of common commodities across the Defra family. This approach to supply chain management involves extensive market analysis and consultation (including supplier conferences) to ensure that the construction of tenders is inclusive and encourages a variety of bids and innovative approaches having full regard for sustainability principles and value for money.
The UK's farmers and growers have an important part to play in our sustainable development objectives. They have the potential to supply food to public sector organisations either as direct contractors or as lower-tier suppliers under a subcontract. The public sector food procurement initiative, as part of the food chain work stream helping to implement the sustainable farming and food strategy for England, is encouraging local producers to compete for more public sector business. It is important that local producers are made aware of the opportunities that arise and of the procurement process. They need to consider their capacity for meeting demand and whether they should collaborate with other producers to increase their chances of winning contracts and subcontracts. Above all, it is right and proper that local producers win public sector business following fair and open competition for contracts that are designed to be efficient and so provide best value for money.