THE Efra committee’s recommendations for improving the UK’s food security won widespread support.

Dorothy Fairburn, the Country Land and Business Association’s north regional director, said: “We need to be able to produce more food for a growing population and we welcome the positive stance in today’s report on innovation and technology, particularly on GM.

“As the report states, the EU decision making process is too restrictive and will leave the UK and the EU trailing behind the rest of the world.”

The CLA backed the call for a co-ordinated approach to food security in UK government.

Miss Fairburn said: “Producing sufficient food to feed our growing population is a huge challenge and it is encouraging to see the committee identify that there is more that can be done to achieve better yields.”

Nick von Westenholz, chief executive of the Crop Protection Association (CPA), said the government must ensure its Agri-tech Strategy is appropriately funded and focused to ensure innovation can be taken up by farmers and growers.

He said: “The UK government must challenge the current approach being taken by European regulators and policy-makers on issues such as pesticides and GMOs, which demonstrates an over-emphasis on precaution that fails to recognise the vital role these technologies must play in feeding the world.

“The Committee sees a role for government in leading public debate around the use of GM crops. But it shouldn’t stop there – government must ensure there is balanced debate around the role of technology in food production, which considers benefit alongside risk.”

Louise Payton, Soil Association policy officer, said: “Rather than measuring agricultural output as yields per hectare, we need to measure how efficiently we produce our food.

“Looking just at yields masks the high levels of inputs with subsequent impacts on greenhouse gas emissions. And when it comes to agricultural emissions, we strongly welcome the report’s call on the government to produce a plan for how the sector should reduce its emissions.”