The Future of Food Chains

CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD

AT PRESENT, 71% OF THE UK’S LAND IS COMPRISED OF UTILIZED AGRICULTURAL AREA, TOTALLING 9 MILLION HECTARES AND COMPRISED OF OVER 100,000 HOLDINGS IN ENGLAND ALONE. 71%

A further 32% of which is allocated for ceareals, of which a significant proportion is used to feed cattle. The majority of agricultural land is located in the South West (20%), South East and East (27%) and the Midlands (23%). The distribution of agricultural land in the UK is dictated by different factors than when compared to traditional Industrial and Logistics demand, relating to arable land in rural areas, to climate and soil conditions, and longstanding farming communities that have become associated with specialised food groups.

FOOD PRODUCTION: RE-SHORING THE UK’S FOOD SUPPLY

AGRI-CULTURE

The agricultural sector within the UK is undergoing a period of structural change, owed to a range of factors including climate change, a post-Brexit labour shortage, and inflation for inputs. Whilst the industry has struggled to navigate challenges largely outside of its control, we anticipate that agriculture in the UK will continue to be a key sector. The United Kingdom is well positioned to seize opportunities from the rapidly growing ag-tech and automation industries which looks to offer technological solutions from managing variability in weather, to optimizing land allocations, and minimizing barriers to entry for new small and independent farming operations. At present, 71% of the UK’s land is comprised of utilized agricultural area, totalling 9 million hectares and comprised of over 100,000 holdings in England alone, over a third of which is allocated for grazing livestock and dairy herds.

DISTRIBUTION OF FARM HOLDINGS ENGLAND

2

30

2

20

1

10

MILLIONS

THOUSANDS

1

0

0

NORTH EAST

NORTH WEST & MERSEYSIDE

YORKSHIRE & THE HUMBER

EAST MIDLANDS

WEST MIDLANDS

EASTERN

SOUTH EAST (INCL. LONDON)

SOUTH WEST

TOTAL FARMED AREA TOTAL HOLDINGS

Source: Defra, March 2023

33 FUTURE OF FOOD CHAIN |