Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the use of grade 1 to 3A agricultural land for growing (a) biofuels and (b) animal feed on food resilience; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK has a high degree of food security which is built on supply from diverse sources; strong domestic production as well as imports through stable trade routes. We produce 61% of all the food we need, and 74% of food which we can grow or rear in the UK for all or part of the year, and these figures have changed little over the last 20 years. For the cereals crops that are produced domestically – such as for human consumption and animal feed – the UK is 88% self-sufficient.
The first UK Food Security Report (UKFSR) was published in December 2021. The UKFSR covers food security in the widest sense from global food availability and sustainability to domestic supply chain resilience, household food security and food safety. The report describes trends in land use in the UK to have been generally stable over the past 30 years. Defra will continue to monitor these trends in light of competing pressures on land use.
In 2020, 121 thousand hectares of agricultural land in the UK were used to grow crops for bioenergy. This area represents just under 2.1% of the arable land in the UK. 30% of land used for bioenergy was for biofuel (biodiesel and bioethanol) for the UK road transport market with the remainder mostly used for heat and power. Within the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation there is a cap on the total amount of crop derived biofuels that can be used. In 2022 this currently stands at 3.67% of total fuel under this scheme.
The demand for biofuel crops such as wheat and sugar beet is subject to global market prices and supply. For farmers, the opportunity to sell into biofuels offers a secondary market for their surplus or lower quality crops and associated agricultural residues. Growing crops for the biofuel sector offers farmers more routes to market for their harvest and flexibility in their crop rotations. However, consideration must also be given to land biodiversity and carbon-store value.
For the livestock sector, and meat production, animal feed is a vital input. Cereals and oilseeds make up a significant proportion of animal feed, many of which are grown by our great British arable farmers. Resilience for animal feed is supported by the ability to access global markets to buy and sell cereals, alongside other necessary feed ingredients.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Whitchurch (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking, if any, to ensure the availability of fertiliser and carbon dioxide to the farming and food sectors following the announcement by CF Fertilisers that they are halting production in the UK.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It is disappointing that CF Fertilisers has taken the decision to halt ammonia production at Billingham. However, since last autumn the CO2 market’s resilience has improved, with additional imports, further production from existing sources such as anaerobic digestion and bioethanol and better stockpiles. We expect the supply of ammonia (from imports by CF Fertilisers) and production of nitric acid and fertiliser to be unaffected. While the Government continues to examine options for the market to improve resilience over the longer term, we urge industry to do anything it can to meet demand, which is in the best interest of businesses and the public.
National Fertiliser Supplies
CF Fertilisers produces ammonium nitrate fertiliser and nitric acid in the UK at Billingham. The company expects to fulfil all ammonia and nitric acid contracts and all orders of Ammonium Nitrate contracted for delivery in the coming months. The supply and price of these products is a commercial matter for CF Fertilisers, and we expect supply to continue.
While global fertiliser prices have risen, the supply chain providing imports of fertiliser to the UK has remained dynamic. We are continuing to monitor the security and stability of fertiliser and other supply chains and work closely with colleagues across government and devolved administrations as well as industry figures.
Carbon Dioxide Supplies
Defra is working with sector stakeholders to encourage contingency planning and resilience and understand that various CO2 supply companies in the UK are working on or have secured additional CO2 to mitigate shortages. We are confident CO2 stocks are secure for the coming winter.
Asked by: Neil Hudson (Conservative - Penrith and The Border)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to take steps to help mitigate the consequences of CF Fertilisers UK halting ammonia production at the Billingham plant, the sole fertiliser and carbon dioxide plant in the UK.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
It is disappointing that CF Fertilisers has taken the decision to halt ammonia production at Billingham. However, since last autumn the CO2 market’s resilience has improved, with additional imports, further production from existing sources such as anaerobic digestion and bioethanol, and better stockpiles. We expect the supply of ammonia (from imports by CF Fertilisers), nitric acid and fertiliser to the UK market to be unaffected. While the Government continues to examine options for the market to improve resilience over the longer term, we urge industry to do anything it can to meet demand, which is in the best interest of businesses and the public.
National Fertiliser Supplies
CF Fertilisers produces ammonium nitrate fertiliser and nitric acid in the UK at Billingham. The Company expects to fulfil all ammonia and nitric acid contracts and all orders of Ammonium Nitrate contracted for delivery in the coming months. The supply and price of these products is a commercial matter for CF Fertilisers and we expect supply to continue.
Food Security
The UK has a highly resilient food supply chain, as demonstrated throughout the COVID-19 response. It is well equipped to deal with situations with the potential to cause disruption. Our high degree of food security is built on supply from diverse sources; strong domestic production as well as imports through stable trade routes. We produce 61% of all the food we need, and 74% of food which we can grow or rear in the UK for all or part of the year, and these figures have changed little over the last 20 years.
Defra has well established ways of working with the 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.
Carbon Dioxide Supplies
The resilience of the UK’s CO2 supply has improved since last autumn and Defra do not expect any significant disruption to essential food supplies, such as meat production. We are in regular contact with representatives from the farming, food and drink sectors to help manage the situation. We will monitor the situation carefully and we are working with the meat industry to ensure that supplies of CO2 to the pig and poultry processing sector are maintained.
Defra is working with sector stakeholders to encourage contingency planning and resilience and understand that various CO2 supply companies in the UK are working on or have secured additional CO2 to mitigate shortages. We are confident CO2 stocks are secure for the coming winter. Since last autumn, the market’s resilience has improved, with additional imports, further production from existing domestic sources and better stockpiles.
Asked by: Neil Hudson (Conservative - Penrith and The Border)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact on (a) national fertiliser supplies, (b) food security, and (c) carbon dioxide supplies for abattoirs and the food and drink sector of the CF Fertilisers halting ammonia production at the Billingham plant.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
It is disappointing that CF Fertilisers has taken the decision to halt ammonia production at Billingham. However, since last autumn the CO2 market’s resilience has improved, with additional imports, further production from existing sources such as anaerobic digestion and bioethanol, and better stockpiles. We expect the supply of ammonia (from imports by CF Fertilisers), nitric acid and fertiliser to the UK market to be unaffected. While the Government continues to examine options for the market to improve resilience over the longer term, we urge industry to do anything it can to meet demand, which is in the best interest of businesses and the public.
National Fertiliser Supplies
CF Fertilisers produces ammonium nitrate fertiliser and nitric acid in the UK at Billingham. The Company expects to fulfil all ammonia and nitric acid contracts and all orders of Ammonium Nitrate contracted for delivery in the coming months. The supply and price of these products is a commercial matter for CF Fertilisers and we expect supply to continue.
Food Security
The UK has a highly resilient food supply chain, as demonstrated throughout the COVID-19 response. It is well equipped to deal with situations with the potential to cause disruption. Our high degree of food security is built on supply from diverse sources; strong domestic production as well as imports through stable trade routes. We produce 61% of all the food we need, and 74% of food which we can grow or rear in the UK for all or part of the year, and these figures have changed little over the last 20 years.
Defra has well established ways of working with the 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.
Carbon Dioxide Supplies
The resilience of the UK’s CO2 supply has improved since last autumn and Defra do not expect any significant disruption to essential food supplies, such as meat production. We are in regular contact with representatives from the farming, food and drink sectors to help manage the situation. We will monitor the situation carefully and we are working with the meat industry to ensure that supplies of CO2 to the pig and poultry processing sector are maintained.
Defra is working with sector stakeholders to encourage contingency planning and resilience and understand that various CO2 supply companies in the UK are working on or have secured additional CO2 to mitigate shortages. We are confident CO2 stocks are secure for the coming winter. Since last autumn, the market’s resilience has improved, with additional imports, further production from existing domestic sources and better stockpiles.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to divert crops intended for biofuel production into food production.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
In 2019, 96,000 hectares of agricultural land in the UK were used to grow crops for bioenergy. This area represents just over 1.6% of the arable land in the UK. 20% of the land used for bioenergy was for biofuel (biodiesel and bioethanol) for the road transport market, with the remainder mostly used for heat and power production.
Whilst growing crops for the biofuel sector offers farmers more routes to market for their harvest, and flexibility in their crop rotations, consideration must also be given to land biodiversity or carbon-store value.
Our fantastic British farmers are world-leaders and carefully plan their planting to suit the weather, their soil type, and their long-term agronomic strategy. It is not government policy to determine which crops farmers should prioritise to include in their crop rotation.
Asked by: Justin Tomlinson (Conservative - North Swindon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to expand access to (a) electric charging stations, (b) compressed hydrogen and (c) bio-fuels at fuelling stations across the UK.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
Government and industry have supported the installation of over 28,000 publicly available charging devices including more than 5,100 rapid devices – one of the largest networks of rapids in Europe. The Government will provide over £1.3 billion over the next four years to support the continued roll-out of chargepoints on motorways and major A roads, in homes and businesses and on-street. Government’s forthcoming EV Infrastructure Strategy will define our vision for the continued roll-out of a world-leading charging infrastructure network across the UK. The strategy will be published soon.
The UK is well placed to lead on hydrogen powered transport, and government is supporting the use of hydrogen cars, vans, buses and lorries through our £23m Hydrogen for Transport programme. As of December 2021, there are fourteen publicly accessible hydrogen refuelling stations across the UK providing hydrogen for road vehicles, with just over 350 hydrogen vehicles operating on UK roads. Additional refuelling infrastructure will be deployed as part of our plans to demonstrate at scale hydrogen fuel cell trucks on UK roads.
One of the benefits of biofuels is that they can be deployed using existing infrastructure. The Department has supported the supply of liquid biofuels at fuelling stations across the UK through the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation which has been successful for 13 years in promoting a market for biofuels. The recent introduction of E10 in September 2021 now means that up to 10% bioethanol is blended into petrol while diesel is also blended with up to 7% biodiesel, a grade known as B7.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the impact on CO2 emissions of the change from E5 unleaded petrol to E10.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
E10 petrol (petrol containing up to 10% bioethanol) was introduced as the standard petrol across Great Britain in September. The impact assessment published alongside the Motor Fuel (Composition and Content) and the Biofuel (Labelling) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2021, which introduced E10, estimates that the change from E5 unleaded petrol to E10 is expected to reduce CO2 emissions by around 0.7 to 0.8 megatonnes per year.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his planned timetable is for allocating additional funding to the devolved nations in order to have greener petrol across the UK.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
In September, E10 petrol (petrol containing up to 10% bioethanol) was introduced as the standard petrol across Great Britain. The roll-out of this greener petrol will reduce carbon emissions associated with petrol vehicles and help us meet climate change targets. Subject to legislative approval E10 petrol will be introduced in Northern Ireland as soon as possible in 2022. There is no additional allocation of funding to devolved nations, the Department is providing appropriate support directly to petrol retailers and connected stakeholders.
Further to extensive consultation with industry the Government has chosen the least burdensome option of introducing E10 in the UK, one which avoids significant infrastructure changes. As part of the public information campaign supporting the introduction of E10 in Great Britain, the Department has made available publicity materials to assist retailers inform the public of the changes and ensure costs on the sector are minimised. A similar approach is planned for the introduction of E10 in Northern Ireland, and the UK Government will procure media advertising and provide support for retailers to inform motorists of the change.
Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to promote ethanol production in the UK.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
The UK biofuel market, including bioethanol, has been supported since 2008 through the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO). The RTFO is a certificate trading scheme which sets targets and provides financial incentives for the supply of sustainable biofuels. This month the government has introduced E10 as the standard petrol across Great Britain. The introduction of E10 increases the amount of bioethanol blended with petrol sold at forecourts in the UK. E10’s introduction has been welcomed by the UK bioethanol industry as positive for the environment and jobs in UK production plants and supply chain.
More broadly, the chemicals sector is crucial to the UK; with 83% of employment outside of London and the South East it provides high-skilled, highly paid jobs across the UK and supplies essential inputs to almost all other manufacturing industries.
Last year's UK Budget sets out our ambition to spread opportunity across the UK, led by vital investment, to help important businesses such as chemical companies to grow, and improve access to skills, capital and ideas. This ambition is being supported by measures such as the new two-year super-deduction that will cut companies’ tax bill by 25p for every pound they invest in new equipment and mean they can reduce their taxable profits by 130% of the cost. In addition, the Government has a target for total R&D investment to reach 2.4% of GDP by 2027 and in the recent Innovation strategy we have committed to increase our annual public investment in R&D to a record £22billion.
Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what his plans are to encourage growing crops for fuel.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
Biofuels used in the transport sector have been supported since 2008 through the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO), led by the Department of Transport. The RTFO is a certificate trading scheme which sets targets and provides financial incentives for the supply of sustainable biofuels. To qualify for support under the RTFO biofuels must meet mandatory sustainability criteria, which include measures to prevent deforestation and other negative land use impacts.
This month, the Government introduced E10 (petrol with up to 10% ethanol) as the standard petrol across Great Britain. The introduction of E10 increases the amount of bioethanol blended with petrol sold at forecourts in the UK. Bioethanol production in the UK results in valuable by-products, such as high protein animal feed and stored CO 2 for the food and drink industries, reducing the need to import these products. Increased UK demand due to the introduction of E10 has wider economic benefits in terms of providing support for UK bioethanol producers and farmers in the supply chain.
In the Government's response to the Climate Change Committee's (CCC) annual progress report to Parliament in 2020, we announced that we will publish a new Biomass Strategy in 2022. This will review what amount of sustainable biomass could be available to the UK, including feedstocks grown for transport biofuels. It will assess how this resource could be best used across the economy to help achieve our net zero greenhouse gas emissions target by 2050.
We are clear that we will support farmers to produce high quality crops in a more sustainable way, ensuring that policy supports the conditions where domestic farm businesses can thrive, whether that be production for food or fuel production. Our Agriculture Transition Plan (2020) sets out how we will use public money to reward farmers and land managers for delivering environmentally sustainable outcomes.