2 Sisters president cites climate, conflict and inflation as supply threats

Industry Call for Action

Britain's poultry sector is urging the government to support domestic food production as supply chain risks intensify. Ranjit Boparan, president of 2 Sisters Food Group, has warned that the United Kingdom's food security is under serious threat and that coordinated action is needed to raise national self-sufficiency.

Fragile Supply Conditions

The group supplies around one third of the chicken consumed in Britain and processes more than 520 million birds each year. Boparan linked current strain to El Niño-driven climate shocks, persistent inflation and conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. He said heavy reliance on imports is becoming more hazardous and could push food prices higher for households. Extreme weather is expected to continue through autumn and winter and into next summer, adding to cost pressure across the chain.

Capital Spending and Planning Delays

Under its NextGen strategy, the company is investing £2 billion (EUR 2.33) to modernise factories and farms, lift welfare and environmental standards, and support a Net Zero target by 2035. Related businesses are putting tens of millions of pounds into UK manufacturing sites and channelling £50 million (EUR 58) into the agricultural economy through British-grown poultry feed protein, deforestation-free sourcing and a shift from synthetic chemical fertiliser to a natural alternative. Boparan said rising costs, weak infrastructure and slow planning are holding the sector back, with some farm applications delayed for well over a year.

Market and Security Implications

He argued that industry cannot act alone and that government must improve critical national infrastructure, including water. Without faster planning and targeted work on resilience, farms and food manufacturing sites could close and costs would rise. Britain would then become more dependent on imports, with consequences for product quality, animal welfare, food security and national security.

Sector Risk Assessment

The remarks followed a survey by the Institute for Grocery Distribution (IGD) in which more than nine in ten industry leaders and academics said risk to the UK food system had increased over the past 12 months. Geopolitics ranked as the top risk over the next five years, followed by climate change, water and agriculture, with animal disease seventh. Respondents did not believe government policy had strengthened food resilience in the past year. IGD said climate change is the greatest long-term threat because it intensifies water scarcity, agricultural volatility, biodiversity loss and supply chain disruption. Kathryn Reynolds, IGD senior manager of resilience, said organisations must anticipate change, invest in capability and build supply chains that can withstand shocks.

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