BRITISH AGRICULTURE MARKETING

Supermarket Secrets for Dispatches by Twenty Twenty production.

This two-part series was Channel 4’s highest rating current affairs show of 2005.

Jane Moore investigated whether the food on supermarket shelves was really as good as it looked, whether prices were as good as they seemed and what happened behind the scenes in the production of supermarket food.

The films asked how supermarkets managed to push prices down and profits up. It highlighted how farmers and growers are being pressured to produce food in a manner that is not good for the environment, animal welfare or our health.

Mud Sweat and Tractors:The Story of British Agriculture, a four-part BBC series was first shown in spring on BBC FOUR and repeated over the summer on BBC TWO. The series was met with critical acclaim culminating in a Grierson Award nomination for Best Historical Documentary, one of the most prestigious awards for television documentaries. Thanks to David Parker, Available Light Production and the farmers who starred in the series.

by John Cresswell, 2 August 2007

Have you noticed the fields of yellow flowers dotted around farms in the spring? The chances are that you have, since nearly 1.5 million acres are grown in the UK every year. This is an area equivalent to 600,000 football pitches.

Each acre produces one to two tonnes of tiny black seeds and in 2006, the UK produced 1.87 million tonnes of seeds. These are harvested in July and August.

Britain – the dirty man of Europe
Feb 2006 (July update)

“Why isn’t Food from Britain here?” I asked the presenter from the French TV company.

“Because you have terrible food. Have you ever wondered why the French never want to go on holiday to Britain?” he replied in his charming accent.

Walking away I thought, no, we don’t have terrible food, we have fantastic food. Scottish shortbread, whisky, salmon and oatcakes. English stilton, cheddar cheese, strawberries and lamb. Cornish clotted cream, scones and pasties. Real ales, ciders, Eccles cakes, Bakewell tart, Melton Mowbray pork pies… the list goes on. But having spent three days walking around the amazing displays of regional French produce at the Salon International D’Agriculture, it was quite clear that something was going badly wrong. Post-BSE and FMD, the French still thought we had terrible food. The British quangos were failing to do their job.