2. What action is the Welsh Government taking to increase the amount of Welsh food that is processed in Wales? OQ57915

The Welsh Government invests heavily in food processors by providing grant support through the food business investment and rural business investment schemes. We have also provided technical support through Project Helix, and soft support such as engagement in trade events and through our business clusters and networks.

That's excellent news, Minister, because COVID, Brexit and the war in Ukraine have all weakened the security of our food supply lines. Notoriously, Welsh milk had to be poured down the drain during the lockdown because the west London processor refused to come and collect it. And obviously, the rise and rise of petrol prices makes it much more expensive to process food outside our country. You've listed a lot of interesting initiatives; are you able to give any sense of the quantity of food that is now not having to travel across lines as a result of the work of Food Innovation Wales and other people? 

You named three immediate challenges that our food and drink sector have had to face, and are continuing to face. Obviously, we're still dealing with the fallout of leaving the European Union, the COVID pandemic is not over, and, obviously, the Ukraine war is also adding another layer of difficulty. I mentioned all of the initiatives that we have. I can't give you the actual quantity of food, but what I will say is I think one of the things that I recognised when I first came into this portfolio was that we needed to build the capacity around food processing, and dairy particularly. I was very pleased in the first week of the Easter recess to visit the new Mona Dairy that will be opening on Anglesey, I think in June, and they told me that if it hadn't been for the £3 million that they received from Welsh Government in a grant, it probably wouldn't have taken place. They've put significant funding in themselves, so it's great to hear those sorts of stories, and see how a small amount of money—£3 million within a budget like my own is a relatively small amount—helps with the processing, because as you say, one thing we don't want to see again is that very—. I think it was very emotive to see that milk being poured away, and I know how much distress it did cause to our farmers. 

I thank the Member for Cardiff Central for raising what is an important and timely topic, and I agree that more Welsh food needs to be processed in Wales, particularly given the disruption to supply chains that we've seen in recent years. It is then regrettable that, as Professor Terry Marsden has previously put it, there has been a decline in and hollowing out of the food infrastructures in Wales. For example, the Farmers' Union of Wales recently pointed out that Wales has lost around 90 per cent of its slaughterhouses over the past three decades. Now, back in June 2019, the then Climate Change, Environment and Rural Affairs Committee made a series of recommendations to the Welsh Government about food processing. This included undertaking a mapping exercise to determine the strength of the sector, as well as establishing an industry-led group to consider policy interventions to increase capacity, and to add value to supply chains. Minister, what progress has the Government made in implementing these recommendations to strengthen the food processing sector? Diolch. 

Thank you. For me, one of the biggest initiatives is Project HELIX. I don't know if the Member is aware of Project HELIX but, for me, that has been the scheme that has really moved things on in a way that I think is very, very positive for the sector. It provides innovation, it provides technical support for food manufacturing and for our processing businesses, and I know this has been very welcomed. As I said, I've been really keen to try and improve capacity, and I gave one example in the dairy sector, but I've been equally as keen to do it with other parts of the processing sector as well. 

So, we have a variety of schemes. You'll be aware we've got three food innovation centres across Wales, one in Llangefni, one in Ceredigion and one here in Cardiff. And again, those three centres have really supported the processing part of the food and drink sector over the past few years, particularly during COVID.