Cameron warns of 'food crunch'

British food production needs to be boosted ahead of a global "food crunch", David Cameron has said.

Addressing the National Farmers' Union (NFU) conference in London, Mr Cameron said changes in people's diets and in the types of crops being grown, is putting pressure on world food supplies.

Climate change is causing a drop in crop yields, while the global drive to create more bio-fuels is taking some farmers away from food production, he said.

The Conservative leader said: "We face the potential prospect that the abundance of food that we all take for granted will come to a crashing end."

Mr Cameron said the UK's self sufficiency in food production had dropped from 72 per cent in 1996 to 60 per cent today.

"Yet just as we are relying, indeed we are depending more and more on foreign farmers to fill our shopping bags, cupboards and fridges, so the days of abundant food from around the world may well be coming to an end," he said.

In China, the average consumption of meat for each person has risen from 20 kilos per year in 1985 to more than 50 kilos today.

And in developing countries as a whole the demand for meat has doubled since 1980, Mr Cameron said.

"Unsurprisingly, farmers are following suit, making the switch from grain to livestock to meet this shift in demand. And this is causing a crunch in global grain stocks," he warned.

British food production needs to be boosted in order to help secure the nation's food supply, he said. Outlining measures which could be taken to protect British farmers, Mr Cameron said production subsidies should be stopped across the whole of Europe and red tape cut for British farmers to help create a level playing field.

British farmers must also try to reconnect with their customers, for example through better product labelling, to help safeguard domestic food production, Mr Cameron said.

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