How much food does the UK import?

In 2025, 58% of the food consumed in the UK came from UK production, 23% from the EU and 19% from the rest of the world, measured by the farm-gate value of raw food. The figures are in Defra's Food statistics in your pocket, updated on 29 July 2026.

Defra's food production to supply ratio, often called self-sufficiency, was 60% for all food and 72% for foods that can be grown in the UK. Fruit and vegetables were the largest food import group by value in 2025, at about £15.0 billion, and imports exceeded exports in every broad food group except drinks, where Scotch whisky helps produce a surplus.

Check whether a claim uses value or volume, all food or only home-grown types, and note that Defra says high self-sufficiency is not the same as food security.

Official sources: Defra: Food statistics in your pocket · Defra: UK food security report

The latest figure

The newest value is at Office for National Statistics (ONS). More on it: UK food price inflation.

When is the next figure out?

Monthly, usually a Wednesday in the middle of the month, 7am; next release 21 October 2026

Every official release due in the next two weeks is on the release calendar.

Terms used in this answer

• CPI (Consumer Prices Index)
  The UK's main measure of consumer price inflation for the Bank of England's 2% target. It tracks the prices of a basket of goods and services bought by households.
• Year-on-year change
  The change between a figure for one period and the same period twelve months earlier, such as March this year compared with March last year.
• Index number
  A number that shows how a value compares with a chosen reference period set to 100. An index of 110 means 10% higher than the reference period.
• Headline figure
  The main summary number that a statistical release leads with, such as annual CPI inflation or quarterly GDP growth. Other measures in the same release can tell a different story.
• Percentage point
  The arithmetic difference between two percentages. A rise from 4% to 5% is one percentage point, but a 25% increase in the rate.

Where the figures come from

• UK trade statistics (ONS, HMRC uktradeinfo and Department for Business and Trade)
  Where to find official UK trade figures: the ONS trade bulletin and balance of payments, HMRC uktradeinfo by product code, and DBT country factsheets.

Related questions

• What does the UK import the most?
• What tariffs does the UK charge on imports?
• How many people face food insecurity in the UK?

This answer says where the official figures are published and how they are defined. It gives no verdict on any claim. To report an error, send a correction request. More questions about trade, exports and brexit: all Trade, exports and Brexit questions.