Our Chair Ursula Lidbetter MBE has been working with DEFRA on the food and drink sector.

Ursula Lidbetter MBE, who chairs the Greater Lincolnshire LEP Chair and sits on the UK Food and Drink Council, has been working with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) on how to grow a sustainable national food and drink sector.

Ursula is the representative for all LEPs in England on the council.

The agrifood sector is extremely important for Greater Lincolnshire’s economy and is one of the LEP’s priority sectors.

The issue of food and drink sustainability is a very complex one which DEFRA is beginning to take seriously.

At the first meeting of the council in January this year Michael Gove, Secretary of State for DEFRA, challenged the board to think about the support needed across Government departments, particularly health and transport, to deliver a more productive and sustainable food chain.

The full council is expected to meet several times a year but a series of working groups has been established, each chaired by a council member, to give advice to the Government on seven themes.

Three groups have been set up so far to cover agricultural productivity, nutrition and skills and workforce supply. Later in the year further groups on logistics, packaging, innovation and exports will be established.

The Greater Lincolnshire LEP Food Board is set to meet on Wednesday 4th July 2018.