Most of UK's essential food supply grown in drought-risk areas, report finds
A new analysis shows that most of England's cereals, potatoes, sugar beet and oilseed crops are grown in regions facing moderate to very high drought risk, threatening food supply and prices.
An analysis by nature-focused investment fund Rebalance Earth has found that the bulk of England's essential food crops are concentrated in areas already experiencing water stress. According to the findings, 81% of England's fresh produce is grown in regions facing drought risk.
Roughly three-quarters of England's wheat (77%), barley (75%) and oilseed rape (74%) are grown in areas rated as facing moderate to very high drought risk, along with 70% of sugar beet and 67% of potatoes.
Acute risk for a quarter of crops
About a quarter of the country's staple crops grow in areas facing acute drought risk, including 30% of wheat and barley, 28% of oilseed rape, 27% of fresh produce and 21% of potatoes.
Rebalance Earth's chief operating and financial officer, Kirsty Wilman, said drought builds slowly and rarely attracts as much attention as flooding, but its effects ripple through the economy in the form of lower yields, strained supply chains and higher prices for consumers.
Among the hardest-hit regions are East Anglia, long regarded as the UK's "breadbasket," and Kent, known as the "garden of England" — both areas have experienced prolonged dry spells in recent years.
The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board's final 2026 harvest report described this year's cereal yield in England and Wales as disappointing, with wheat, spring barley and oats all coming in below historic averages.
At the Elveden estate in Suffolk, a 9,000-hectare farm owned by the Guinness family, yields have also fallen well below normal. Estate manager Andrew Blenkiron said the farm has experienced drought conditions in three of the past five years. He argued that the UK should make better use of its water resources to keep growing staple foods on land suited for it, rather than increasingly relying on imports.
