Among the many issues arising in the wake of Brexit are concerns that British food may suffer (as though it could possibly get any worse). But it isn't their tendency to cook everything unto death (apart from fish & chips) that's the problem: given that two of the main reasons underlying the initial establishment of the European Union involved maintaining peace and ensuring stable food supplies for the populations of the member states - and one need look no further than the recent food riots in Venezuela to grasp the significance of that particular goal - Britain's vote to exit is sounding alarm bells on that front as well.
As a country that produces only around fifty-four per cent of what it eats, Britain starts to look vulnerable to fluctuating markets.
In fact, some 40% of produce available in the island nation is imported from EU member states, so it appears without question that prices of fruits and vegetables will undergo a dramatic increase as supplies of these commodities are likely to decrease. On the other hand, Britain stands to benefit to some degree from a reduction in Brussels-imposed regulations, some of which have been, it must be acknowledged, just plain stupid; the EU's Common Fishing Policy, for example, required fishers to discard useful fish in order to meet imposed quotas. That is not only wasteful, but an environmental affront. Further along these lines, the Brussels-imposed CFP accepted no national sovereignty with regard to a member nation's own waters. Whereas the USA and many other nations enforce pelagic exlusion zones in the waters off their coasts, EU rules obligated member states to accommodate fishers from other member states; exclusion zones were banned.
To this extent, Brexit stands to return control of Britain's coastal waters to full control of the nation for the first time in decades, which should allow them to better manage their fisheries. Cheers for British fish & chips!
Nonetheless it will be interesting to see how the food situation in the U.K. pans out, so to speak.
