Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effect of the shortage of CO2 on businesses in Coventry.

The Government recognises the importance of the industrial gases sector, including the CO2-providing subsector. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has continued to monitor the shortage and Ministers and officials have been in regular contact with producers and suppliers throughout the process. We have been assured by producers of CO2 that production and supply levels are now returning to normal.

BEIS officials have also regularly discussed the shortage with counterparts in departments whose sectors were affected.

The use of CO2 is particularly prevalent in the agri-food sector, including farming, food and drink manufacturing and processing, soft and alcoholic drink carbonation and cane sugar refining. As the department responsible for these industries, Defra have worked closely with the Food Chain Emergency Liaison Group (FCELG) and additional food supply chain stakeholders to understand the impacts of the carbon dioxide shortage across the food supply chain.