0:00:02 > 0:00:05Britain is facing the biggest shake-up in food and farming
0:00:05 > 0:00:07since the Second World War.
0:00:07 > 0:00:12The direction will be higher prices, less choice and poorer quality.
0:00:12 > 0:00:17Some farmers fear a bad Brexit deal could drive them out of business.
0:00:17 > 0:00:20I've been through a couple of foot and mouth outbreaks.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23This is more important, more crucial to get right.
0:00:25 > 0:00:28Others say food standards could drop.
0:00:28 > 0:00:33We'll see the environment damaged, we'll see livestock cruelly treated.
0:00:33 > 0:00:38But could food costs actually be lower when we're out of the EU?
0:00:38 > 0:00:42If we buy food from world sources rather than just the European Union,
0:00:42 > 0:00:46prices are something like 20% lower on average.
0:00:46 > 0:00:48And can we strike a good deal?
0:00:48 > 0:00:50So we are a highly desirable market.
0:00:50 > 0:00:52That actually gives us some strength in our negotiation.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54We don't have to just roll over.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for a realistic
0:00:57 > 0:01:01chance for us, to have a say in the way that our farms are farmed.
0:01:16 > 0:01:20Our farms and our food feels very British -
0:01:20 > 0:01:21traditional countryside
0:01:21 > 0:01:24and meals steeped in our culture.
0:01:24 > 0:01:28But in truth, the European Union affects every part of our food
0:01:28 > 0:01:31chain from field to fork.
0:01:31 > 0:01:36The EU say what farmers are allowed to grow
0:01:36 > 0:01:39and, indeed, what they're not.
0:01:39 > 0:01:43The EU sets animal welfare and food standards regulations,
0:01:43 > 0:01:47and will ban imports that don't meet them.
0:01:47 > 0:01:52EU payments come direct to farmers, keeping quite a few of them
0:01:52 > 0:01:57in business. And many of the people that pick and pack our food...
0:01:57 > 0:01:59TRANSLATION
0:01:59 > 0:02:01..are in Britain thanks to EU rules
0:02:01 > 0:02:04on free movement of labour.
0:02:04 > 0:02:09And free-trade regulations mean that fresh fruit and veg
0:02:09 > 0:02:13and that cheeky continental treat are around all year duty-free.
0:02:15 > 0:02:20The EU even controls what can go on the label of our food.
0:02:20 > 0:02:24So when we do leave the European Union,
0:02:24 > 0:02:27where is our next meal coming from?
0:02:30 > 0:02:34Brexit negotiations have just begun, but the UK's divorce bill has
0:02:34 > 0:02:37to be agreed before we start to talk about trade.
0:02:38 > 0:02:41Food and farming, which together make Britain's biggest
0:02:41 > 0:02:44manufacturing sector by far, are ripe for discussion.
0:02:49 > 0:02:53So, I'm cooking up a traditional British lunch.
0:02:53 > 0:02:54Smells good.
0:02:57 > 0:03:01I've invited Guy Smith of the National Farmers' Union,
0:03:01 > 0:03:05food and farming campaigner Vicki Hird and James Cleverly MP,
0:03:05 > 0:03:09a Brexiteer and trade committee member in the last Parliament.
0:03:09 > 0:03:11What are their vital ingredients for a healthy
0:03:11 > 0:03:13exit from the European Union?
0:03:14 > 0:03:17Do you think this administration really values farming?
0:03:17 > 0:03:20Any civilised country has to ask itself,
0:03:20 > 0:03:21do we want to become
0:03:21 > 0:03:24recklessly dependent on imports for our food needs?
0:03:24 > 0:03:27And I accept that is a political question, there is no
0:03:27 > 0:03:28easy answer to that.
0:03:28 > 0:03:31But I think that's the question that we have confronting us
0:03:31 > 0:03:33- at this moment in time. - What do you think, Vicki,
0:03:33 > 0:03:35do you think this is a kind of fork in the road moment?
0:03:35 > 0:03:36It is a fork in the road.
0:03:36 > 0:03:40We're demanding a massive refocus and rethink
0:03:40 > 0:03:42because a huge amount of protection
0:03:42 > 0:03:43that we've got for our water,
0:03:43 > 0:03:48for our wildlife, for our health, for our safety, comes from Europe.
0:03:48 > 0:03:52Because we're leaving the EU, there is no status quo option,
0:03:52 > 0:03:54so we're going to have to have some reform.
0:03:54 > 0:03:57The criticisms that we as a society, and perhaps as policymakers,
0:03:57 > 0:03:59have just
0:03:59 > 0:04:02not paid food and farming as much attention as it
0:04:02 > 0:04:04deserves, I think, is a very, very fair criticism.
0:04:04 > 0:04:07But we're not going to let vast tracts of the British countryside
0:04:07 > 0:04:08just go to weed.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16So the whole food chain is in for a shake-up,
0:04:16 > 0:04:19and it starts with farming.
0:04:19 > 0:04:21The EU strongly supports farmers,
0:04:21 > 0:04:25but far from all of them support the EU.
0:04:25 > 0:04:30Despite the fact that British farmers receive around £3 billion in
0:04:30 > 0:04:35subsidy payments from the European Union, many of them voted to leave,
0:04:35 > 0:04:40believing that life outside the EU provided them with more opportunity.
0:04:45 > 0:04:49So, with opinion split on the consequences of Brexit, we've been
0:04:49 > 0:04:53to visit two Welsh livestock farmers - one alarmed, one excited.
0:04:56 > 0:05:0024-year-old Jacob Anthony farms in the South Wales Valleys.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04I think one of the main reasons I voted to leave the EU is
0:05:04 > 0:05:06because I'm a young farmer and I'm looking to the future.
0:05:06 > 0:05:09I think a lot of us in the industry weren't happy with the way
0:05:09 > 0:05:13that our sector was going and the way that farming was going,
0:05:13 > 0:05:15so I felt that this was a once in a lifetime opportunity
0:05:15 > 0:05:17for realistic change.
0:05:20 > 0:05:22Away. Away, away. Away, away.
0:05:22 > 0:05:23Away, away, away.
0:05:23 > 0:05:28Jacob works alongside his father and grandfather to raise lamb and beef.
0:05:28 > 0:05:32He thinks Europe-wide decisions about farming just don't work.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36At the moment, with the way the EU works, there's one agricultural
0:05:36 > 0:05:40policy that's meant to fit all 28 nations that are in the EU.
0:05:40 > 0:05:43That agricultural policy was meant to fit countries farming
0:05:43 > 0:05:45reindeer in the Arctic Circle all the way down to
0:05:45 > 0:05:48farmers in the Mediterranean farming olives.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53He believes Britain's contribution to the European budget props up
0:05:53 > 0:05:56bad farmers here and boosts rivals overseas.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00British farmers and the British people are actually
0:06:00 > 0:06:03subsidising foreign countries in eastern Europe, for example,
0:06:03 > 0:06:07and improving their farming to help them become competitors with us.
0:06:09 > 0:06:13Jacob is keen to send his flock to new markets in places like China.
0:06:14 > 0:06:18I feel that by leaving the EU now it gives us a chance to have a
0:06:18 > 0:06:22head start and negotiate other trade links with emerging markets.
0:06:22 > 0:06:27Let's infiltrate them now and negotiate with them new trade deals
0:06:27 > 0:06:29that we haven't been able to whilst we've been a part
0:06:29 > 0:06:30of the European Union.
0:06:33 > 0:06:3760 miles north and back in early March, we visited
0:06:37 > 0:06:41when John Davies was checking on the lambs born overnight.
0:06:46 > 0:06:49It's a family business stretching back more than a century.
0:06:52 > 0:06:56I have a responsibility to the next generation.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59We didn't inherit this business from the last generation,
0:06:59 > 0:07:01we are merely caretakers for the next.
0:07:06 > 0:07:08He works alongside his wife, two children
0:07:08 > 0:07:11and 87-year-old father, who all muck in.
0:07:13 > 0:07:15Yeah, so we've got a few hundred ewes in here now,
0:07:15 > 0:07:18mainly twins, some ewe lambs here.
0:07:20 > 0:07:21John voted Remain,
0:07:21 > 0:07:25and sees huge peril in the wrong deal or a careless Brexit deal.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30Brexit could have a massive effect on our food-producing
0:07:30 > 0:07:36ability in this nation. That's a key strategic decision to make.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38Come on. Come on.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42He says continued subsidy is vital for the survival of hill
0:07:42 > 0:07:43farming especially.
0:07:43 > 0:07:46The new man in charge of agriculture, Michael Gove,
0:07:46 > 0:07:49has pledged to maintain current subsidy levels
0:07:49 > 0:07:54until at least 2022, but John is also very worried about trade.
0:07:55 > 0:07:59Trade is so important to sheep farmers because nearly 40%
0:07:59 > 0:08:05of lambs are exported and of those nearly all 95% go to the EU.
0:08:07 > 0:08:09We need unfettered
0:08:09 > 0:08:13and free access to the European market for what we produce.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16We need those standards to be equivalent for any products
0:08:16 > 0:08:18coming in.
0:08:18 > 0:08:22But if those standards are not the same, John fears cheap,
0:08:22 > 0:08:25mass-produced beef from international competitors
0:08:25 > 0:08:26will drive him to the wall.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30I'm really scared of imports produced to completely
0:08:30 > 0:08:34different standards, hormones, you know, feed-lock beef, etc.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37We're based on pasture, green, pleasant land.
0:08:37 > 0:08:39You know, high environmental standards.
0:08:39 > 0:08:41We really are proud of that.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45But pride alone can't support farming.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49He says we need a policy which echoes the wartime push to
0:08:49 > 0:08:50grow what we eat.
0:08:50 > 0:08:52- ARCHIVE:- It's up to you - dig for victory.
0:08:55 > 0:08:59For John, it's important we aren't too dependent on foreign imports.
0:08:59 > 0:09:02He thinks it's a matter of our national security.
0:09:02 > 0:09:06I believe that we need to learn the lessons from the past.
0:09:06 > 0:09:10There was a real recognition of the need to produce a certain
0:09:10 > 0:09:12level of food here in the UK.
0:09:12 > 0:09:16We will soon dip below 50% of the food that we eat being
0:09:16 > 0:09:17produced in this country.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19I don't think that's a healthy position. I really don't.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28And across the border and into the Midlands,
0:09:28 > 0:09:32this British farming business say they could abandon these shores.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42G's Fresh in the Vale of Evesham is one of our biggest suppliers
0:09:42 > 0:09:44and growers of fresh vegetables.
0:09:47 > 0:09:50But they also have farms in Poland, the Czech Republic,
0:09:50 > 0:09:51Senegal and Spain.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56The company has around 3,000 foreign workers,
0:09:56 > 0:09:58mainly drawn from around Europe.
0:10:05 > 0:10:07Are there any British workers on the line here?
0:10:07 > 0:10:08- Yes.- There are?- Yes.
0:10:08 > 0:10:11- About roughly how many, I mean...- Erm...- Roughly.
0:10:12 > 0:10:18- Five.- Five. Out of 80 or so working in here today?- Yes.
0:10:18 > 0:10:19So they've got to find a lot more...
0:10:19 > 0:10:22- Yes.- ..if all the migrant labour goes.- Yes. Yes.
0:10:22 > 0:10:23Yeah.
0:10:24 > 0:10:25So what are we looking at here?
0:10:25 > 0:10:29So this is the first of our UK asparagus, so we've literally
0:10:29 > 0:10:32just started harvesting in the last week, this crop is...
0:10:32 > 0:10:35Out in the field is managing director Derek Wilkinson.
0:10:35 > 0:10:39He's the boss and the only British passport holder.
0:10:39 > 0:10:43He's worried about losing his Bulgarian and Romanian pickers.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46The local area has very low unemployment, and Derek has
0:10:46 > 0:10:51found he can't recruit seasonal British workers in enough numbers.
0:10:51 > 0:10:53I can see why that matters to you
0:10:53 > 0:10:55but why should that matter to the UK shopper?
0:10:57 > 0:11:00Well, it depends whether the UK shopper wants British produce.
0:11:00 > 0:11:02Erm...
0:11:02 > 0:11:04You know, cos without the labour,
0:11:04 > 0:11:0875,000 seasonal staff employed in horticulture, and without
0:11:08 > 0:11:12that labour we will not have a British horticultural industry.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15The Government, aware of these concerns,
0:11:15 > 0:11:19may revitalise the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme,
0:11:19 > 0:11:23which gave access to foreign labour without the right to live here.
0:11:23 > 0:11:26Nearly four million people across the UK are employed in the food
0:11:26 > 0:11:30and drink sector, but Derek feels it's unloved.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33He's seen headlines about sweet hot deals for the car
0:11:33 > 0:11:37industry or banking, and fears farming may be sold out.
0:11:37 > 0:11:39The whole future of our horticultural
0:11:39 > 0:11:43industry could be decided in a simple late-night meeting
0:11:43 > 0:11:46and it could be a trade-off against something else, you know,
0:11:46 > 0:11:47keeping financial services here.
0:11:47 > 0:11:49That is the most worrying thing for us.
0:11:51 > 0:11:53And if it goes the wrong way for them,
0:11:53 > 0:11:57G's Fresh can still grow stuff - but just not here.
0:11:57 > 0:11:58We've got overseas operations,
0:11:58 > 0:12:01we've got the capability to go and set farms up anywhere.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04But leaving the UK is not a decision you'd take lightly?
0:12:04 > 0:12:07I'm a British farmer through and through and, yeah, to suddenly
0:12:07 > 0:12:13stop farming here, moving overseas, would be a heavy heart moment and...
0:12:13 > 0:12:15But, you know, we'd do it.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20The fate of farming is important
0:12:20 > 0:12:24but what happens to food and its price directly affects all of us.
0:12:25 > 0:12:29Some people are already struggling to afford three meals a day.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36This is a place where food prices really matter.
0:12:38 > 0:12:41The Kingstanding Food Community cafe is a charity serving
0:12:41 > 0:12:44affordable meals in a deprived area of Birmingham.
0:12:47 > 0:12:48It's open six days a week,
0:12:48 > 0:12:51staffed by a network of more than 80 volunteers.
0:12:54 > 0:12:58Since we voted Leave, some food staples have already risen 5%,
0:12:58 > 0:13:01mainly due to the fall in the value of the pound.
0:13:01 > 0:13:06Some analysts suggest another jump of 3-5% may be on the way.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08So what are you making here today?
0:13:08 > 0:13:11- We're making some bread today.- Ah.
0:13:11 > 0:13:16So the bread is made every day in the community cafe to feed
0:13:16 > 0:13:17the local community.
0:13:17 > 0:13:22How do you think families round here are finding food prices currently?
0:13:22 > 0:13:25What we're finding is our volunteers increasingly,
0:13:25 > 0:13:29and rightly so, are going from shop to shop to shop to find
0:13:29 > 0:13:32where they can find their cheapest food.
0:13:32 > 0:13:37Kingstanding is in the top 1% on the deprivation index nationally, so
0:13:37 > 0:13:43you are in an area that's perhaps one of the most poverty stricken
0:13:43 > 0:13:47in the whole of the country in terms of both income and cuts in the area.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50We get people in here who are definitely hungry.
0:13:50 > 0:13:55So you really are trying to keep the prices as low as possible to make
0:13:55 > 0:13:58- them affordable for that clientele. - To make them as affordable
0:13:58 > 0:14:00as possible for people, yes,
0:14:00 > 0:14:02so that they can access it daily if need be.
0:14:03 > 0:14:06To help keep meals healthy and their costs down,
0:14:06 > 0:14:09they get as much food as possible from their own allotment.
0:14:11 > 0:14:14Long term, if food prices continue to hike, it would have a
0:14:14 > 0:14:16massive impact on a project like this.
0:14:16 > 0:14:20We can't afford to put our prices up in order to cover
0:14:20 > 0:14:25the additional price because people simply won't come.
0:14:25 > 0:14:27So, yeah, it would have a massive negative impact.
0:14:35 > 0:14:39So how is leaving the EU going to affect food price and supply?
0:14:41 > 0:14:44The main supermarkets didn't want to be in this programme,
0:14:44 > 0:14:45so I met with Justin King,
0:14:45 > 0:14:50former chief executive of Sainsbury's, who supported Remain.
0:14:50 > 0:14:53There has been, in my estimation, almost no conversation
0:14:53 > 0:14:58about the potential impact of Brexit on the food supply chain.
0:14:58 > 0:15:02By definition, that means the public at large
0:15:02 > 0:15:03generally are completely in the dark.
0:15:05 > 0:15:08In the dark and, he says, facing three key dangers.
0:15:10 > 0:15:14I think one can say very clearly what the direction will be.
0:15:14 > 0:15:17You know, higher prices, less choice and poorer quality,
0:15:17 > 0:15:23because all of those dimensions have been improved by these open
0:15:23 > 0:15:26trading relationships that we've had over the last 40 years.
0:15:28 > 0:15:32Brexit, almost in whatever version it is, will introduce friction,
0:15:32 > 0:15:34it will introduce barriers.
0:15:34 > 0:15:39That makes it less efficient, which means all three of those
0:15:39 > 0:15:43benefits - prices, quality and choice - go backwards.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46Why are we not hearing this from the supermarkets?
0:15:46 > 0:15:49The last thing you're going to see the serving chief executive
0:15:49 > 0:15:53any retailer say is, "We intend to put up prices."
0:15:53 > 0:15:59The intention of supermarkets is to drive price down, quality up
0:15:59 > 0:16:01and, therefore, improve value for money.
0:16:01 > 0:16:05That was their ambition the day before the Brexit vote
0:16:05 > 0:16:08and it will remain their ambition after it.
0:16:08 > 0:16:10Brexit just made it a whole lot harder, in my estimation.
0:16:12 > 0:16:14Others are more optimistic.
0:16:14 > 0:16:17Consumer goods manufacturer and Leave campaigner John Mills
0:16:17 > 0:16:21believes the EU keeps prices artificially high for the shopper.
0:16:23 > 0:16:27Food prices inside the European Union vary from food
0:16:27 > 0:16:29product to food product, but on average they're something
0:16:29 > 0:16:34like 20% higher than they are in the rest of the world,
0:16:34 > 0:16:39so there's very substantial scope for food prices coming down
0:16:39 > 0:16:43if we switch source of supply outside the European Union.
0:16:44 > 0:16:47But that is because of a lower standard of production,
0:16:47 > 0:16:49and if we're going to get the cheaper price, we'll have to have
0:16:49 > 0:16:51- that lower standard. - I don't think that's true at all.
0:16:51 > 0:16:55I think the reason why food prices are higher inside the European Union
0:16:55 > 0:16:59is because they've got tariffs which keep the prices up.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01It's not anything to do with quality,
0:17:01 > 0:17:04it's to do with the institutional arrangements, which means
0:17:04 > 0:17:08that the food prices are kept much higher to increase farmers' incomes.
0:17:11 > 0:17:13The Government has said little about plans for food
0:17:13 > 0:17:17and farming after Brexit, so we wanted to speak to the new
0:17:17 > 0:17:20Defra secretary, Michael Gove, or his team.
0:17:20 > 0:17:22But they declined.
0:17:22 > 0:17:23Defra said...
0:17:35 > 0:17:38The problem for our Brexit negotiators is that changing
0:17:38 > 0:17:42the food and farming system is likely to create winners and losers.
0:17:46 > 0:17:49If Britain opens up to the global market,
0:17:49 > 0:17:53shoppers might be winners, as it could drive down food prices.
0:17:53 > 0:17:54Under this scenario,
0:17:54 > 0:17:59farmers who mainly export worldwide could also win.
0:17:59 > 0:18:02But losers from freer trade would be those farmers unable to
0:18:02 > 0:18:04compete with cheap imports.
0:18:04 > 0:18:09And if instead the Government chose to protect those farmers and ensure
0:18:09 > 0:18:13higher standards, consumers could then lose out from higher prices.
0:18:16 > 0:18:17There's a lot at stake
0:18:17 > 0:18:22and the politicians want to get it right because every voter buys food.
0:18:31 > 0:18:35The Prime Minister has already been driving for new deals in America.
0:18:35 > 0:18:38Our special relationship with the USA could provide
0:18:38 > 0:18:39a source of cheap food.
0:18:41 > 0:18:45Much of that food could end up coming from here - this is Iowa,
0:18:45 > 0:18:52a state of pig farms, big fields and where pigs outnumber people by 7-1.
0:18:54 > 0:18:59Some feel food production in the USA is more factory than farming.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02The scale is huge in comparison to the UK.
0:19:03 > 0:19:06The USA is the world's largest beef producer,
0:19:06 > 0:19:10supplying one fifth of the beef eaten around the world.
0:19:10 > 0:19:14One person who has helped put steak many of those plates is
0:19:14 > 0:19:17Iowa cattleman David Trowbridge.
0:19:17 > 0:19:19So we are custom feeding these cattle,
0:19:19 > 0:19:23we like to say that we run a hotel and a restaurant.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27- So...- And what is it that this hotel and restaurant is particularly
0:19:27 > 0:19:29offering that makes people bring their cattle here?
0:19:29 > 0:19:32Are you a farmer or a maitre d' for cows?
0:19:32 > 0:19:34We're pretty much cattlemen.
0:19:34 > 0:19:37Taking care of cattle is what we do every day.
0:19:38 > 0:19:41This farm houses up to 8,000 cattle
0:19:41 > 0:19:45being intensively fed and fattened up for market.
0:19:45 > 0:19:49They're outside, but not grazing, unlike our beef cattle,
0:19:49 > 0:19:50which are largely grass-fed.
0:19:52 > 0:19:54We have the grain and the resources
0:19:54 > 0:20:00to produce a very high nutrition,
0:20:00 > 0:20:07very desirable edible product for the world. And the United States
0:20:07 > 0:20:11is one...really the only place on earth that we can produce
0:20:11 > 0:20:15that product and Britain's a great possibility where we can go
0:20:15 > 0:20:20with our product and increase our profitability and provide a safe
0:20:20 > 0:20:23and nutritious product for the British people.
0:20:23 > 0:20:27With a new president in the White House, David feels it's time
0:20:27 > 0:20:31to make American farming great again and win new orders from abroad.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35With the new administration that we have, that wants to do
0:20:35 > 0:20:38bilateral agreements with individual countries, we are
0:20:38 > 0:20:43very excited about bringing the US product into Britain.
0:20:43 > 0:20:45What would you say to British cattle farmers -
0:20:45 > 0:20:47just tough that they've got to go to the wall?
0:20:47 > 0:20:52Well, we hope not, we don't want to destroy an industry
0:20:52 > 0:20:54within another country.
0:20:54 > 0:20:58But it's up to your consumers or what they want to pay
0:20:58 > 0:21:02for the product. If it costs more to produce it in Britain or
0:21:02 > 0:21:06if we can do it cheaper here, that is a concern.
0:21:16 > 0:21:20In the UK, we spend roughly 8% of our income on food.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23Americans spend just 6%.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26And that's less than any other country in the world.
0:21:26 > 0:21:30It's partly down to large-scale, cheap and efficient farming.
0:21:33 > 0:21:35Production methods may differ from Britain
0:21:35 > 0:21:38but one thing we have in common is family ownership.
0:21:38 > 0:21:4190% of farms here are run by families.
0:21:44 > 0:21:48The Meier have farmed here in Iowa for more than 100 years.
0:21:48 > 0:21:53Curtis has just invested 900,000 in this new cattle shed with
0:21:53 > 0:21:57rubber flooring, underfloor dung storage and variable ventilation.
0:22:00 > 0:22:03They're comfortable, they've got plenty of room to lay down.
0:22:03 > 0:22:06They're... You know, they're not overcrowded.
0:22:09 > 0:22:12We've had some southern cattle that we've brought in here,
0:22:12 > 0:22:17they were a little on the wild side, they'd be crawling the walls.
0:22:17 > 0:22:18You put them in here a week
0:22:18 > 0:22:21and they're a completely different pen of cattle.
0:22:21 > 0:22:25They're content, they just seem to adapt to the environment.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29Curtis' farm is surrounded by plenty of fields,
0:22:29 > 0:22:31but the cows aren't in them.
0:22:31 > 0:22:35It's where their feed grows, largely genetically modified crops.
0:22:36 > 0:22:40We don't grow any GM crops commercially in the UK -
0:22:40 > 0:22:43the EU severely restricts them.
0:22:43 > 0:22:46You've got 550 cattle in here.
0:22:46 > 0:22:49They're not going to get outside and be on grass.
0:22:49 > 0:22:54- Is that a problem for you?- No. No. No.- Is it a problem for them?
0:22:54 > 0:22:55I don't think so.
0:22:55 > 0:23:00Cos most British beef is raised outside on pasture
0:23:00 > 0:23:03and a lot of British farmers, and some shoppers,
0:23:03 > 0:23:04think that's the way it ought to be done.
0:23:04 > 0:23:06What would you say to that?
0:23:06 > 0:23:11You've got to have corn-fed beef to get marbling in the muscle.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14That is what adds flavour and juiciness
0:23:14 > 0:23:19and tenderness to that cut of beef, in my opinion.
0:23:19 > 0:23:22But probably the most controversial difference in livestock farming
0:23:22 > 0:23:26either side of the Atlantic is the American use of growth
0:23:26 > 0:23:29hormones banned in the EU.
0:23:29 > 0:23:30The hormone is administered with this
0:23:30 > 0:23:33and it goes in as an implant into the ear.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36Now, each shot costs about three or four dollars
0:23:36 > 0:23:42but the weight of meat it puts on is worth about 30-40.
0:23:42 > 0:23:44These hormones are banned in Britain.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56With potential foreign competitors using farming techniques
0:23:56 > 0:24:01currently prohibited in the UK, would we welcome their food?
0:24:01 > 0:24:05Let's ask. First stop on our trip, Leicester city centre.
0:24:06 > 0:24:07Here we go.
0:24:14 > 0:24:16Right, now we've got that sorted,
0:24:16 > 0:24:17the idea of this is to find out
0:24:17 > 0:24:21whether people would be inclined to buy imports
0:24:21 > 0:24:23if it made their food cheaper, and I'm going to get them
0:24:23 > 0:24:26to stick one of these Panorama logos on home-grown or
0:24:26 > 0:24:28imports, depending on what they think.
0:24:28 > 0:24:32If importing food made it cheaper, would you be happy to have
0:24:32 > 0:24:34more imports of food or would you stick with home-grown?
0:24:34 > 0:24:35Home-grown.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38- Lovely.- If you can support the British farmers, I would.
0:24:38 > 0:24:41I could see us go back to the old values, really, you know,
0:24:41 > 0:24:44where everything was home-grown and England, you know,
0:24:44 > 0:24:45looked after itself.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48This, I would have 100%,
0:24:48 > 0:24:54- but we need to buy in...- Mm-hm. - ..and we need to sell out.
0:24:54 > 0:24:55- OK.- That's it.
0:24:56 > 0:24:57Lovely.
0:24:57 > 0:24:59Cross country, to a farm shop.
0:25:01 > 0:25:03Yeah, that's great.
0:25:08 > 0:25:10Here we are - Coventry farmers' market.
0:25:10 > 0:25:12- Here?- Yup, perfect.
0:25:12 > 0:25:15- Come on, over you come. Don't be shy.- Thank you.
0:25:17 > 0:25:19I can see you looking interested.
0:25:24 > 0:25:28People really do seem to favour the idea of British food.
0:25:28 > 0:25:30Whether they do that when they've actually
0:25:30 > 0:25:32got the money in their hands in the shop is a different matter,
0:25:32 > 0:25:34but they certainly sound convincing.
0:25:39 > 0:25:42So, I'm off - back to my lunch party.
0:25:44 > 0:25:47Guy, you know, we spoke to people and said, precisely,
0:25:47 > 0:25:51"If food imports were to make food a little cheaper,
0:25:51 > 0:25:55"would you like that scenario?" And they still said, "Stay home-grown."
0:25:55 > 0:25:57That's what WE hear.
0:25:57 > 0:26:00And that's really encouraging. And...
0:26:00 > 0:26:01But do you believe them?
0:26:01 > 0:26:05Well, I'm sceptical that they will deliver that.
0:26:05 > 0:26:07I'm aware that people tend to say things to people with
0:26:07 > 0:26:10clipboards outside supermarkets.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13Price sometimes sways consumers more than anything else
0:26:13 > 0:26:15and that's what we've got to be careful of.
0:26:15 > 0:26:17Price, of course, will be important.
0:26:17 > 0:26:19And for some people who are struggling financially,
0:26:19 > 0:26:23price of what you put on your plate and what you feed your children
0:26:23 > 0:26:27with is one of the most important decisions that they can make.
0:26:27 > 0:26:30It is very important, but we've got to remember when people
0:26:30 > 0:26:33are food poor, in food poverty, it's not necessarily
0:26:33 > 0:26:37about making food ever cheaper, lower quality or more processed.
0:26:37 > 0:26:39I get that, but you keep... you keep...
0:26:39 > 0:26:41And I'm going to pull you up on this every time you do it.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44You keep making the jump and it's a logic flaw
0:26:44 > 0:26:47to suggest that cheap means low quality.
0:26:47 > 0:26:50What you can see in America is a massive race to the bottom
0:26:50 > 0:26:51when it comes to food.
0:26:51 > 0:26:54They've really invested heavily in industrial systems,
0:26:54 > 0:26:56particularly when it comes to livestock.
0:26:56 > 0:26:58History has shown us that you can't just put up
0:26:58 > 0:27:01barriers to global markets.
0:27:01 > 0:27:03I mean, we do exist within global markets,
0:27:03 > 0:27:08we can't pretend that we don't and a lot of our animal welfare
0:27:08 > 0:27:11regulation, I think, is absolutely right and is not something I...
0:27:11 > 0:27:13I don't think, I don't perceive there being any appetite to row back
0:27:13 > 0:27:16on that. We don't need the EU's intervention to protect some of
0:27:16 > 0:27:19those things, cos British consumers would want to keep that.
0:27:19 > 0:27:21Well, I'm wary of that.
0:27:21 > 0:27:24That cheaper product grown to different standards,
0:27:24 > 0:27:26lower cost of production, will...
0:27:26 > 0:27:29may well win the day.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32We all eat and the food industry is worth more than car-making
0:27:32 > 0:27:34and aerospace combined.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39Farms cover almost three-quarters of our landscape.
0:27:39 > 0:27:41It's going to need a lot of
0:27:41 > 0:27:45special attention in Brexit negotiations,
0:27:45 > 0:27:47if we are not to have very material
0:27:47 > 0:27:50and adverse consequences downstream.
0:27:50 > 0:27:51It's not too late.
0:27:52 > 0:27:56But it's a pretty short period of time, a lot less than two
0:27:56 > 0:27:59years now, and food needs to get on the agenda pretty soon.
0:28:00 > 0:28:03The establishment doesn't really like Brexit
0:28:03 > 0:28:05and they're throwing up difficulties all over the place,
0:28:05 > 0:28:07which I don't think are going to materialise
0:28:07 > 0:28:09to anything like the extent to which they claim.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13The European Union is so ingrained in our food and farming
0:28:13 > 0:28:16that Brexit could change the face of our countryside,
0:28:16 > 0:28:20the fate of our farmers and the very stuff on our plates.