POLICY PULSE – JUNE
POLICY HEADLINES
What’s Happening
PRIME MINISTER RESIGNATION
Almost two years to the day that Labour won the general election, Kier Starmer this month announced he would be stepping down as Prime Minister of the UK. Whilst these changes can create uncertainty, the priorities and policy areas which matter to the cold chain – food security, resilience, energy security and decarbonisation, are critical issues which will remain critical under any future leadership. As the government transitions towards new leadership over the coming months, with Andy Burnham widely expected to be the next PM, there may be changes in ministerial roles and government officials. However, we remain steadfast in our policy work and will continue to build on the momentum we have already built over the past months and years. We will continue to engage with current ministers and senior officials and engage with any newly appointed ministers to ensure the critical role of the cold chain is understood across government, now and in the future.
NEW FOOD SECURITY MINISTER
This month also saw another reshuffle, with the appointment of Stephen Morgan as the new Minister for Food Security and Rural Affairs at Defra. Mr Morgan took up the role in June, succeeding Angela Eagle following her move to the Home Office as Security Minister.
Whilst new to the food security brief, Mr Morgan’s responsibilities include food security, trade, science and innovation. In his first comments following the appointment, he highlighted ambitions around economic growth, sustainability and supporting the UK’s food industries, however the mention of food security was absent. We will be seeking early engagement with the Minister and his team to demonstrate the urgent need for policies and strategies which protect the country’s food supply, ensuring the vital link between the farmgate and fork – the cold chain, is included and recognised in future policy.
We have secured sustained and encouraging engagement with senior Defra officials and will continue to leverage the relationships we’ve built to directly influence the Minster and his team on issues relating to food security.
RECORD BREAKING TEMPERATURES IN UK
This month’s record-breaking temperatures have once again demonstrated just how essential the UK’s cold chain infrastructure is to everyday life, and the increasing threat climate change and extreme weather is posing to our critical infrastructure. As much of the country experienced unprecedented June heat, with temperatures reaching a record of 37°C, the pressure on temperature-controlled supply chains increased significantly.
Our sector’s ability to continue operating and protecting vital food and pharmaceutical products, even under some of the most challenging conditions, serves as a testament to its resilience and commitment. Whilst we saw many parts of the economy and other services slow down, or not function at all, during the extreme weather, the cold chain continued to deliver.
The recent weather has also provided an important opportunity to raise awareness of the sector’s contribution. We have been actively engaging with various media outlets, think tanks and government departments, to highlight the challenges that extreme temperatures create for temperature-controlled logistics and to highlight the critical infrastructure that underpins the UK’s food and pharmaceutical supply chains.
As climate change increases the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, the resilience of cold chain infrastructure will only become more important. We will continue to use moments and events like these to ensure policymakers, ministers, media and the public understand the vital role our sector plays.
ADVOCACY SPOTLIGHT
What we’re doing
Launch of Landmark White Paper on Food Security
Earlier this month, we launched our landmark white paper on the UK’s food resilience and security, and the essential role the cold chain plays in underpinning both. Our official launch event in Westminster saw attendance from major cold chain operators, charities, national media, government officials, leading academics and industry experts, highlighting the vast amount of interest in our sector and the growing recognition of the role the cold chain plays in national food and health security.
Importantly, the white paper was never intended to be a standalone piece of work, but rather the beginning of a campaign to drive meaningful long-term policy change. Since the launch, we have already begun building on this momentum through our ongoing engagement with ministers, officials and stakeholders across government, ensuring that the report’s recommendations continue to inform discussions around food security, resilience and national preparedness.
Following the launch, we hosted a dedicated webinar exploring the report’s key findings and recommendations, why this represents such a pivotal moment for the sector, what it means for businesses across the cold chain, and how we intend to sustain engagement and achieve tangible policy outcomes for the sector.
You can watch the full webinar recording here.
Cold Chain Federation Support the Adaptive Capacity Alliance
This month, we attended the second meeting of the Ministry of Defence-led Adaptive Capacity Alliance (ACA), an initiative led by the National Armaments Director Group which brings together defence and industry to strengthen the UK’s resilience and preparedness in times of crisis and conflict.
The latest in-person discussions focused on scenario planning and exploring how industry can support defence requirements during periods of disruption, whether caused by geopolitical instability, conflict or major national emergencies. These conversations reinforced the reality we have long known – defence needs industry and government is increasingly understanding that resilient supply chains are fundamental to national security.
Encouragingly, there is a growing awareness within the Ministry of Defence of the critical role the cold chain plays in ensuring both UK citizens and military personnel continue to receive the food and medicines, both in times of peace and in periods of disruption or conflict.
We will continue to support the Adaptive Capacity Alliance as it develops and the work progresses. Importantly, our involvement has also enabled us to build relationships with senior colleagues across the MOD and to engage with them around the role of the cold chain in national security more broadly, as opposed to just in the context of the ACA.
Ministry of Defence Interest Highlights Cold Chain’s Role in National Security
In recent weeks, we have seen growing interest from senior Ministry of Defence officials interested in the role that the cold chain is already playing and will continue to play in supporting national security and defence, both on UK soil and further afield.
We have engaged in numerous discussions with officials responsible for supply chains, logistics and preparedness planning, on the UK’s ability to respond effectively to crises, whether geopolitical conflict, major disruption or national emergencies, depends upon resilient and adaptable supply chains capable of delivering essential goods where and when they are needed most.
We have engaged in numerous discussions with officials responsible for supply chains, logistics and preparedness planning around the UK’s ability to respond effectively to crises, whether geopolitical conflict, cyber-attack or an extreme weather event, and the critical role that resilient temperature-controlled supply chains play in delivering essential goods where and when they are needed most.
Encouragingly, the MOD is increasingly recognising that food and pharmaceutical supply chains are a fundamental part of defence capability and preparedness. This recognition supports our ongoing campaign for cold chain as critical national infrastructure, which we will leverage in our conversations with Defra, DHSC and other government departments.
Cold Chain Federation Support Three Defra Food Resilience Projects
Both leading up to, and since the launch of our white paper this month, we have been approached by and engaging with several teams working within Defra, or funded by Defra, on projects relating to the resilience of the UK’s food system.
These projects include the National Audit Office study on food supply chain resilience, which is expected to be published this Autumn, with direct recommendations and references to the cold chain. Separate to that, we have been engaging with a Defra policy team looking at the resilience of the UK’s food system post-farm gate, which is expected to produce a report and theory of change model over the coming months. Alongside this, we have engaged with a significant academic-led and Defra supported project, which covers the entire food system, including the cold chain. The outputs of this report are expected to be published over the next 12 months, and will
All of this work signals to us that Defra is increasingly understanding and recognising that the UK food system is vulnerable, particularly given the backdrop of mounting threats we’re seeing in the form of extreme weather, cyber-attacks and ongoing geopolitical conflict. Our consistent engagement across various government teams shows that the CCF is not only a trusted and credible voice, but also the cold chain sector as a whole is an indispensable part of the UK food supply chain.
WHAT TO WATCH
What’s Ahead
Steel Strategy (From July 2026): The Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill will give the government powers to bring steel companies into public ownership where it is in the national interest. From 1 July, this will be supported by lower tariff-free import quotas and higher tariffs on steel imported above those limits. Whilst the bill is aimed at strengthening UK steel production in the long term, the transition period is likely to see impacts on availability and pricing of steel for cold storage construction. This could lead to higher costs for businesses investing in new cold stores, fleet upgrades or infrastructure improvements.
The European Partnership Bill: The proposed European Partnership Bill could prove significant for food supply chains and cross-border trade through a planned reset in UK-EU relations, particularly around sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) rules. The bill could help reduce trade friction, simplify the movement of food products and cut delays at borders. For the cold chain sector, reduced border delays and smoother movement of goods between the UK, EU and Northern Ireland would be a welcome development after years of disruption and added complexity.
National Audit Office report on resilience of the UK food supply chain to disruptions (Summer 2026): The National Audit Office (NAO) is due to publish a report in September 2026 assessing how resilient the UK food supply chain is to disruption. Its findings could influence future government policy on food security, infrastructure resilience, and contingency planning across the supply chain. The CCF have directly engaged extensively with the NAO on this study, including hosting them at a cold chain site to demonstrate first-hand the role of the sector in food resilience and delivering a detailed presentation on operational realities and system dependencies. We are the stakeholder with the most sustained engagement throughout their work, ensuring the critical role of the cold chain is fully reflected in their analysis of UK food supply resilience.
Decarbonisation Strategy for Non-Road Mobile Machinery (TBC): A Decarbonisation Strategy for Non-Road Mobile Machinery, which includes Transport Refrigeration Units, has yet to receive a confirmed publication date. The strategy is expected to explore how emissions from off-road equipment can be reduced through cleaner fuels, electrification, hybrid technologies, and operational efficiency improvements. For refrigerated transport operators, the proposals may signal future regulatory direction and provide early indications of funding support, compliance requirements, or technology transition pathways. As of last month, we know that TRU’s have once again moved to a different team within the DfT, meaning we will continue to engage with the right officials to ensure TRU’s are included in any future strategy.
MONTHLY TEMPERATURE CHECK
With the UK experiencing record-breaking June temperatures and a period of political transition following Kier Starmer’s resignation, the pressure on critical supply chains and the issue of food security have never been under more of a spotlight.
We’d like to understand which area you think the UK food supply chain is least prepared for. Please take a moment to share your view in our poll. The poll will close 14/07/2026.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR FEEDBACK ON ANY ISSUES IN THIS BRIEFING PLEASE CONTACT MADDY COUPE POLICY MANAGER [email protected].
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