Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I’d like to thank the Cabinet Secretary for her statement. I feel confident in responding to this statement, because this is a sector of the economy where I make the biggest personal contribution, namely food and drink. I look forward very much to celebrating with the National Farmers Union tomorrow in this Assembly—we’ll be celebrating Welsh food—and we’ll be celebrating Welsh drink with the Campaign for Real Ale later in the evening. So, I’m very pleased to see that this sector, which has grown, as the Minister has said in her statement, over the past two years, continues to develop and continues to develop apace.

May I start, therefore, with a question on this statement and its relevance to our membership of the European Union? We are all aware, of course, that things such as PGI for Welsh lamb assists in promoting that particular product, and, of course, over 90 per cent of Welsh meat and dairy products that are exported are actually exported to the European Union, which shows me that this is a crucially important aspect as to why we should remain members of the European Union. I’d like to ask the Secretary what assessment has been made of the importance of membership of the European Union and growth in this sector. If I could just ask her one specific question that perhaps she won’t be able to answer today, but if she could look at what’s happened to the 'Carmarthen ham' application for PGI status, because I do understand that that bid is still hanging, like the 'Carmarthen ham' itself, and we do need to make some progress in order to improve things there.

If I could turn to the second issue that I wanted to raise with the Cabinet Secretary, namely what we are doing on food waste, the Cabinet Secretary mentioned the Courtauld agreement of 2025 and this is a commitment that places no duties whatsoever in terms of reducing food waste in terms of businesses and the food production sector. I’m very disappointed that the Westminster Government hasn’t legislated, as our colleagues in France have, in order to limit food waste and also to ensure that the over 1 million tonnes of food wasted every year, which is appropriate for human consumption, is referred to the people who need that food. In the world in which we all live, where our communities are full of food banks, it is a disgrace that we continue to waste so much food. Whilst I accept that the Welsh Government only has the option to be part of Courtauld 2025, I would like to hear from the Cabinet Secretary that this Government is eager to legislate, as they’ve done in France, to actually place a duty on major food traders and producers to reduce food waste, to recycle food waste and also to give any food suitable for human consumption to those people who need it.

Whilst we are talking of people who are going hungry, may I refer now to another section of the statement—the section on healthy eating? It is disappointing to learn that eating fresh fruit and vegetables according to the guidance, in terms of having five a day—although I think that may have gone up to seven a day according to some now—. It is disappointing that we continue to struggle to reach even that five-a-day target in Wales, and we’ve reduced from 36 per cent of the population to 32 per cent of the population achieving it. So, we’re moving backwards in terms of encouraging people to eat more healthily, and that relates back, of course, to the statement that we heard from the health Secretary a little earlier.

Plaid Cymru, during the last campaign, had proposed that it would be possible to provide fruit bowls free of charge—to put free fruit bowls in every school and every classroom in Wales. Do you think that that is a good idea and can that be achieved, particularly using fresh fruit from Wales? We have wonderful strawberries at the moment. We will also have lovely pears and apples from Wales, and they could be provided within our schools.

The other area that I do want to turn to briefly is food security. You mentioned this in your statement. The latest figures demonstrate that only 46 per cent of food eaten in Britain is actually produced here, and we have fallen back significantly in terms of local food production within Wales and within Britain. Now, some would argue that, in a single market and a globalised world, the importation of food is going to play an important part. I do accept that, of course, but I would like to hear that it is the Government’s aim to increase the amount of food that is produced in Wales and that is consumed in Wales, and that that is a positive objective for our farmers, for our environment and also for healthy eating. I was very disappointed to hear the leader of UKIP earlier, in asking a question of the First Minister, suggesting that it may be possible to move away entirely from providing support to Welsh farmers and to import food cheaply, rather than producing our own healthy produce that is also good for the environment here in Wales.

The final point that I want to raise, Deputy Presiding Officer—thank you for your patience—is one on how we use food to present a positive image of our nation. We know that football has been doing that very successfully recently, but I also think that food has a very important role to play here.

May I ask you, are you of the opinion, as the Minister responsible for this area, that we sufficiently celebrate the excellent food and drink that we have here in Wales? You mentioned a new identity for Welsh food and drink, and I don’t think that that’s really taken hold. When Joe Ledley’s beard has more followers on Twitter than Welsh food has, then I think there’s a lot more work to be done to promote this and to celebrate Welsh produce. There are—I’m sure you’ll be part of them, Minister—hundreds of food fairs and events happening the length and breadth of Wales over the next few months. I look forward to going to the seafood fair in Aberaeron, in Milford Haven, in Lampeter—there are festivals in all parts of Wales. But are we really actually bringing these together with our farmers’ markets, and are you content with the way that we market Welsh food within Wales and outwith Wales? There is some work to be done here. We lost a very strong brand in the past and I don’t think we’ve regained that ground, as of yet.