Skills councils warn MPs of threat to food security

Three Sector Skills Councils have joined forces today (12 October) in the Houses of Parliament to alert politicians and civil servants to gaps in the training and qualifications needed to maintain long-term food security. The event was staged after the three Sector Skills Councils, Lantra, Improve Limited and Skillsmart Retail, all reported worrying skills gaps impacting upon the UK’s ability to feed itself. As a result they have formed The Food Supply Network. Peter Martin, Chief Executive of Lantra said, “The contribution of our three sectors to the UK’s economy and food supply is much greater than often recognised. “If our workforce is not trained and able to meet the challenges of climate change, an expanding population and decreasing resources, as well as the pace of technological change, then this will cause real problems in the future.” Food manufacturing is the largest element of UK manufacturing at 15% Gross Value Added (GVA). In fact the total GVA for the UK food and drink manufacturing industry is £22.6 billion, and the industry’s GVA has shown an increasing trend since 1998 (a growth of 14%). The industries of the Food Supply Network are worth £79.5 billion (GVA) annually to the UK economy and employ 3.6 million people across the food production, manufacturing and retail sectors, which is one in seven of the entire workforce. The event attracted key speakers including the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Jim Paice; Justin King, Group Chief Executive Sainsbury's Supermarkets Ltd and President of the IGD; Ross Warburton MBE, Executive Director of Warburtons and President of the Food and Drink Federation (FDF); David Linton, Managing Director of Fylde Fresh and Fabulous; and Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones, The Black Farmer. Lantra - the Sector Skills Council for the land-based and agricultural industries – says 43 percent of all vacancies in its sector are hard to fill, with twice the national average of skills shortage vacancies. Improve Limited - the Sector Skills Council for food and drink manufacturing and processing (FDMP) - reports the need for 137,000 new recruits 2007 - 2017, with demand particularly high amongst managers and senior officials, and professional occupations. Improve has identified worrying skills gaps especially at managerial level including leadership and strategic management, operational people management and IT skills. For Skillsmart Retail - the Sector Skills Council for retailing - a key issue is expansion of the sector as 214,000 retail jobs are expected to be created over the next few years. Peter Martin added: “We would like MPs, ministers and civil servants to understand how important skills in the sector are. Food security can only be guaranteed if those working in the food supply industries have the right skills.” ENDS Note to editors: Lantra • Lantra is the Sector Skills Council for land-based and environmental industries, working to ensure these businesses access the training, qualifications, skills and knowledge they need. • An independent UK organisation, Lantra works with employers and the UK’s governments to address the skills and productivity needs of approximately 230 businesses (one in every ten UK businesses) in: agriculture; animal care; animal technology; aquaculture; environmental conservation; equine; farriery; fencing; fisheries management; floristry; game and wildlife management; land-based engineering; horticulture, landscape and sports turf; production horticulture; trees and timber and veterinary nursing. • By working together with the sector, Lantra leads research on skills issues and business needs, sets national standards and develops qualifications to meet modern business needs and help businesses grow through skills. • For more information see www.lantra.co.uk. Improve Improve is part of the network of sector skills councils established by the government to take the lead in driving up skills in the workplace in order to promote higher productivity and stronger competitiveness for UK businesses in the global market. Funded primarily by the government, sector skills councils are also supported by employers whose needs they represent when stimulating change among the providers of education and skills. Sector skills councils work closely with employers to promote greater commitment to improving skills in their workforces, and with schools, colleges, universities, and private training organisations to improve the provision of basic skills training and to make vocational and occupational training more relevant to the modern commercial climate. For further information, go to www.improve-skills.co.uk. Skillsmart Retail Skillsmart Retail is the Sector Skills Council for Retail. Part-funded by Government and led by retailers, it aims to be the recognised authority on retailers’ skills needs and priorities. Its mission is to drive a step change in skills levels in retail by: • Making a compelling case for the formal recognition of retail skills • Uniting retailers to simplify and improve access to the skills system • Improving the quality of new recruits into the retail sector • Raising the skills levels of the existing workforce in retail operations www.skillsmartretail.com

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