Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much (a) funding and (b) other resources he allocated to the Pick for Britain campaign.

Last year’s ‘Pick for Britain’ campaign was launched in April 2020 in response to the emerging risks that the COVID-19 pandemic posed to the UK’s food supply chain. It was a joint initiative between Defra and industry stakeholders, aimed at promoting horticultural picking roles to British workers, particularly those unemployed or on furlough.

Defra secured co-investment from our industry project partners to deliver the campaign. This ensured that the wide-reaching campaign had a relatively small cost for the Government. Approximately £29,800 was spent by Defra on the ‘Pick for Britain’ campaign in 2020.