Logistics

Probably not that many people really see the system from above. That is, we are all little cogs in the great machine, only vaguely aware of the other bits that are necessary to make things work. But one purpose of a professional civil service is that they do have some people that understand these things. Or that should be the purpose. You can't just suddenly start ordering massive amounts of food from somewhere else. It just doesn't work.

Raab’s solution is just to find other countries to make up the shortfall. “The idea that we only get food imports into this country from one continent is not appropriate,” he said. But if that means , he is deluding himself.

Last week the Centre for Food Policy at City, University of London released a briefing paper written by, among others, Professor Tim Lang, looking at British food security post-Brexit. It pointed out that the US is currently only the tenth largest exporter of food to Britain. “For the US to replace the combined food imports from the other nine of the top 10,” the report said, “would require a vast food flotilla and logistics operation exceeding that of the 1940-45 Atlantic convoys.”

I have no clue, either, but it's easy to see how a few disruptions here and there could be catastrophic.