Britain's Food and Farming: The Brexit Effect

2017-07-10

Brexit marks a seismic shift for the UK's food and farming industry, but what will it mean for the consumer? The EU affects the whole food chain from field to fork. It dictates what farmers are allowed to grow, sets animal welfare standards and offers a large supply of cheap labour to work in the fields and processing plants. Panorama's Tom Heap talks to insiders who claim Brexit will mean higher prices, lower quality and less choice on the shelves. Others claim it is a fantastic opportunity to address inefficiency and design a new mode of food production for the next generation. The programme also travels to the USA, where farming is run on an industrial scale. Will UK consumers back British farmers or switch to potentially cheaper imports of hormone-filled meat from abroad?