Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure the UK’s food security remains intact, and what estimate they have made of the number animals which are physically checked when imported.

The UK has a resilient food supply chain and is equipped to deal with situations with the potential to cause disruption.

Food security is built on supply from diverse sources, strong domestic production as well as imports through stable trade routes.

UK consumers have access through international trade to food products that cannot be produced here, or at least not on a year-round basis. This supplements domestic production and also ensures that any disruption from risks such as adverse weather or disease does not affect the UK's overall security of supply.

Defra works with industry and across Government to monitor risks that may arise. This includes extensive, regular and ongoing engagement in preparedness for, and response to, issues with the potential to cause disruption to food supply chains.

The UK Agriculture Market Monitoring Group monitors UK agricultural markets including price, supply, inputs, trade, and recent developments.

Our systems record by consignments and depending on species there may be multiple animals within a consignment. In 2024, the number of physical checks undertaken on live animal consignments being imported into the UK was 15,030.