"Britain braced for post Brexit food shortage" says front page headline of Western Daily Press. A reader responds!

The alarmist front page headline “Britain braced for post Brexit food shortage” in the Western Daily Press on July 17 was followed up on page 2 by the main article, by Adam Bennett, with an equally scaremongering title “Food chaos predicted in new report”.  Apparently “prices for imported fruit, vegetables, meat and fish will rise by up to 22 per cent.”  The authors of the report also suggest “. . . even if Britain opts for a soft Brexit food supply, agriculture and even the environment will be adversely affected”.  One of them was also quoted as saying: “There is solid evidence about vulnerabilities ranging from diet-related ill-health to ecosystems stress.”

So where did this doom-laden report come from?  It was produced by professors from the universities of Sussex, London and Cardiff - hardly establishments bursting at the seams with enthusiastic Brexiteers – and published by the Science Policy Research Unit at the University of Sussex.

As for the political climate at the University of Sussex, this article in The Telegraph is revealing: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2017/02/21/right-wing-student-sussex-professors-think-problem-needs-dealing/

Be that as it may, this letter appeared in the Western Daily Press on July 26.  It suggests even a post Brexit food shortage could have beneficial consequences.

Brexit could be the answer to obesity.

Earlier this year a House of Commons briefing paper stated that 27 percent of adults in England are obese and a further 36 percent are overweight.  The NHS UK website tells us that Britain is “the fat man of Europe” and “more than half the population could be obese by 2050”.  Furthermore, the Obesity Health Alliance, which represents healthcare professionals and public health specialists, stated in a recent letter to The Guardian that: “The evidence is clear that obesity racks up a staggering bill: at least £5 billion to the NHS and tens of billions to society every year.”

So when I read the alarmist front page headline “Britain braced for post Brexit food shortage” (Western Daily Press, July 17), although it initially conjured up visions of queues and ration books, I began to wonder if such a shortage might actually be beneficial.  After all, in World War Two when food was in short supply, unhealthy foods were reduced or simply not available and everyone, rich and poor alike, ate a much better balanced diet.  People lost weight and were healthier because of it.

If leaving the EU means having to tighten our belts and eat a little more frugally is that such a bad thing?  Brexit could well prove good for the nation’s health, the NHS and our finances.

S.W.

Ilminster, Somerset