Imported meat hits £5bn as concerns grow over British food resilience and UK farmers need Government support, Co-op warns

• Co-op reveals imported meat to the UK increases to £5 billion in 2025
• The resilience of Britain's domestic food system is becoming increasingly vulnerable in the face of climate change and geopolitical shocks.
• Pressure on Government to support and grow number of agricultural cooperatives to increase strength and resilience of UK farming.

HMRC data obtained by Co-op reveals UK meat imports has risen sharply, up 15% year on year, a concerning trend showing the UK imported £5 billion of meat last year, leading to a fragile British food supply chain exposed to global shocks.

In 2025, poultry was the most imported protein, worth almost £2 billion+, with imports from Poland and the Netherlands accounting for the largest share, including products such as chicken. However, poultry imports from Thailand saw a big increase, growing by nearly 50%+ on previous year indicating its growing presence in shopping trolleys and on dinner plates. 

The convenience retailer who only sells and uses 100 percent British meat and poultry say the findings highlight Britain's increasing reliance on international supply chains for imported meats, which are not immune to challenging weather conditions and the increasing number of worldwide conflicts and growing global tensions. The ongoing shockwaves from the Iran conflict have exposed the deep interdependence and fragility of complex supply chains that underpin our food system, and the critical importance of strong domestic production. It comes as food policy experts warn the UK is not prepared to deal with the scale of shocks that could jeopardise our food security.

One proven business model for success within agriculture is a cooperative, with recent estimates indicating that there are 526 agricultural co-operatives in the UK, generating an income of over £9 billion.  

Matt O'Hagan, Technical Director at ESG Drysdale – a co-operative business, said: "Our East of Scotland Growers Cooperative dates back to 1987 and brings together 20 member growers across a wide geographical spread. Being grower owned creates genuine alignment between farmers, the land and the route to market. Working collaboratively over the long term, the cooperative model supports responsible land stewardship, investment in sustainable farming practices, and the ability to adapt to environmental and climate challenges. The structure gives farmers a real voice in how their produce is sold and valued, building trust, stability, and long-term confidence. That alignment allows us to plan effectively, maintain quality and manage the volatility that continues to challenge the wider sector. It's a proven, sustainable model that brings clear benefits to the UK food system."

Co-op argues that expanding agricultural co-operation is a critical, underutilised lever for strengthening the resilience, productivity, and sustainability of the agri-food system.  In response, the retailer is backing the Co-operative Party's proposals that would grow farmer co-operation to strengthen Britain's food system, by building its resilience, and deliver a better deal for British farming.  
  
The new policy paper sets out a three-pillar plan for Government to champion, enable and scale agricultural cooperatives across the food system. It focuses on the policy levers that Government should pull to support farmers to form, grow and scale cooperatives, including through its upcoming 25-year farming roadmap. 

There remains substantial untapped potential to scale and deepen collaboration across the sector and co-operatives offer a proven institutional model for improving market power, reducing costs, and enabling collective investment in infrastructure, innovation, and sustainability. 

Agricultural co-operatives can manage shocks and inherent in their business model is the capacity to increase supply-chain resilience, champion sustainable agriculture, facilitate innovation, harness green finance, boost horticultural production, build rural skills and community, and create stronger sectoral partnerships.

Paul Gerrard, Director of Public Affairs and Campaigns, Co-op said:" The issue of supply chain resilience is upon us now and there is a clear and demonstrable benefit to the co-operative business model in agriculture.  An expansion of agricultural co-operation is both an economic opportunity and a political imperative: it directly addresses the need for a more secure and sustainable food system, one less exposed to the volatility of global markets, and the instability in a rapidly changing world.   

"As the largest consumer co-operative in the UK, we are clear how the model naturally lends itself to sharing costs and spreading risk, which will make the day-to-day fundamentals of farming more efficient. The untapped potential of agricultural co-operatives is an opportunity to strengthen our food system and deliver a better deal for British farming." 

Joe Fortune, Leader of The Co-op Party said: "Co-operation is a form of strategic resilience. In a world where fertiliser supplies can be disrupted and energy costs can spike overnight, the ability to coordinate, adapt and invest collectively becomes a matter of national strategic importance. Government has the opportunity to unleash growth in this sector and use it to help secure our supply chains for the future."