The Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs committee, comprised of members from various parties, will conduct an investigation into the sharing of profits and risks along the food supply chain. Furthermore, the committee will scrutinize external factors such as imported food and global commodity prices.
The inquiry is timely, as households face the highest levels of food price inflation since the 1970s. With this in mind, the committee has opted to survey issues throughout the food supply chain, including retailers, who will be called upon to provide their perspective.
The committee’s latest inquiry is a continuation of its ongoing Food Security investigation. The latter aims to explore topics surrounding access to healthy and affordable food, particularly for low-income households.
The committee will gather verbal and written evidence during the parliamentary sessions before publishing a report with its suggestions for change where required. Sir Robert Goodwill, the committee’s chair, commented, “It is our responsibility as a committee to uncover what is happening during these periods of high food-price inflation when many people find it challenging to provide their families with good, reasonably priced food.”
Consumers are burdened by substantial price increases. The question becomes: are other players in the food supply chain unfairly reaping the benefits of this price increase, or are they also impacted? The committee aims to strike a proper balance that ensures healthy, affordable, and ideally, domestically produced food is available to all.