‘Biodiversity’ is one of those words that gets used a lot, but probably not enough – as it’s a principle that supports all life on earth – and enables the human race to survive. So to mark World Wildlife Day on March 3rd, this blog is here to convince you why we need it, what we can all do to encourage it, and to share a bit about what Bidfood is doing in this space.
What does biodiversity mean?
‘Biodiversity’ is simply a term that’s used to describe the variety of living species that exist, and how they fit together. If a geographical area is described as ‘biodiverse’, it means that it contains and supports a wide variety of living species – both below ground (in terms of microorganisms and creatures in the soil), on the ground (plants, animals) and in the air (pollinating insects, birds, etc.)
You only have to watch a nature documentary to understand that these ecosystems are deeply connected – as part of a food chain, or because they work together as part of a natural process (e.g. bees and pollination, earthworms and soil health). Take away one element of the system and there’s usually an impact – not necessarily one that’s immediately obvious to the human eye, but one that becomes apparent over time, as measured in the 2024 Living Planet Report by the World Wildlife Fund, indicating an average 73% decline in wildlife populations since 1970.
Note that this is an average; by definition this means that some species have grown in number (often due to interventions to support their recovery), and others have declined or sadly, become extinct.
What are the effects of declining biodiversity on food production?
Industrial food production has become distinctly un-biodiverse, and is usually a driver of biodiversity loss. An example that’s often quoted to illustrate why this is a problem, is the banana. 99% of exported bananas are the Cavendish variety, despite over a thousand different varieties that exist.* The Cavendish gained huge popularity because it was resistant to a strain of fungus that wiped out the previously dominant Gros Michel variety (that was tastier and harder to bruise) – but fast forward many years, and the Cavendish is now suffering from the same threats and is resistant to fungicides.
Vast plantations are full of the same variety (also known as ‘monoculture’) – so this means entire harvests can, and have been wiped out. Read more about this here.
If you imagine that similar threats exist to many monoculture food staples, then we should all sit up and listen, as the lack of biodiversity is a threat to all food security – and by extension, human survival.
Today, just nine plant species account for 66% of global crop production, with rice, wheat, and maize alone providing more than 50% of the world’s plant-derived calories**. Monoculture dependency led to the disastrous Irish potato famine in the 1840s – as there was huge dependency on just one crop – and the problem was solved only when resistant genes were found in primitive potato cultivars and related wild species.
This is one of the reasons why there has been a growth in interest of ‘heritage’ varieties of food – these are lesser known varieties that have been cultivated over generations through careful seed protection and are often characterised by genetic diversity.
Oliver Kay, our produce division, supply heritage varieties of vegetables and provide associated recipes – simply visit Oliver Kay Produce and search for ‘heritage’ – there are heritage varieties of tomatoes, carrots and salads. These non-standard varieties also boost diversity of offering on diners’ plates – and contribute to a broader nutritional intake.
Growing heritage crops can be challenging however, requiring a wider skill set than the better known, mainstream variety – and usually a wider variety of farm equipment for harvesting. Not only this, but selling multiple crops and marketing them requires a commercially skilled farmer.
There’s often a lack of uniformity in appearance, they can damage more easily in transit, and many have smaller yields with a shorter shelf life. These are exactly the reasons why, in the short term at least, the mainstream varieties are more commercially desirable and dominate both supply and demand.
How can the food industry encourage biodiversity?
Biodiversity is crucial to long term sustainable food production, but it doesn’t get the airtime it needs, for three main reasons.
- As humans, we don’t feel the effects of biodiversity loss in so dramatic a way as we do climate change. Those of us approaching middle age may well notice that our car windscreens are no longer covered in dead flies in the summer (as they used to be) and we see far fewer songbirds, but it’s a far ‘slower burn’ of a problem than for example, forest fires, storms, flooding or extreme heat.
- Biodiversity is harder to measure than other environmental factors. Biodiversity measures are location and species-specific and often labour intensive (e.g. counting butterfly eggs in woodland) whereas greenhouse gas (CO₂e) is measurable universally in KGs or tonnes – and it’s just a single measure to focus on.
- Cheaper, non-biodiverse food is nearly always prioritised. The true costs of production of cheap food aren’t widely understood – so most of us continue to rely on a relatively small variety of food that benefits from the economies of large scale production systems.
Some positive news in this space is that the UK government announced in September 2023 that new precision breeding technology to boost food production will be brought forward under new laws. There’s a lot of detail behind this but the measures will reduce the use of pesticides, helping pollinators that are so vital to our ecosystem.
The good news is that we can all do something to encourage biodiversity. You may not be able to influence climate policies of other countries, but it’s location-specific, so you can do simple things in your own life like ‘No Mow May’, hang birdfeeders, cut a small hole in your garden fence for hedgehogs to move about, join your local Wildlife Trust, and so on.
What is Bidfood doing to encourage biodiversity?
When it comes to food, we have sourcing policies in place for certain threatened categories, e.g. our fish policy for own brand is available here: Our policies | Bidfood UK.
Do speak to your account manager about this if you want to know more about the species you’re buying.
We’ve also produced a factsheet on biodiversity, available at Bidfood sustainability fact sheets – as well as a factsheet on regenerative agriculture, which describes how farming can be done differently to enhance biodiversity – which is great for soil health, climate resilience, nutrient density, and more.
In the meantime, Bidfood participates in the UK Hospitality Biodiversity Group, to understand more about what’s happening in this space for our industry, and we’re currently reaching out to suppliers to understand what action they’re taking to protect and/or encourage biodiversity within their supply chain. Some of this is already covered in our previous blogs – simply visit our blog page and search for ‘regenerative‘.
Finally, if you want to learn more about this and learn more about how the UK’s food is produced, Cumbrian farmer James Rebanks has written a fantastic book, English Pastoral, which charts the journey taken by previous generations and himself, learning more about how to farm in a way that sustains habitats and biodiversity. It’s factual yet beautifully written!
The more people understand the issues, the louder the call to action for change in our food systems.
Our vision is to be the best wholesale foodservice provider and a positive force for change. Read more about this here: Positive force for change.
*Source: BBC, The ‘pandemic’ destroying the world’s favourite fruit
**Source: Science, Vol 386, 2024
