British firms are missing opportunities to invest in UK agri-food and processing, yielding ground to overseas businesses, according to English Farming and Food Partnerships (EFFP).

"Although in recent years some processing investment has come from the UK, much has come from overseas," said EFFP chief executive Sion Roberts.

Most of this investment had come from farmer controlled and owned businesses from continental Europe, such as Arla, and privately owned companies such as Cargill and Müller, said Roberts.

In milk processing, he said, Scandinavian firm Arla now accounted for more than one-third of the UK's liquid milk market and foreign owned businesses dominated the production of yoghurt. Austrian firm Nom Dairies recently started production at its £40M factory in Telford, for example.

"In the meat sector foreign intervention is even more substantial," said Roberts. "Vion, the Dutch-based farmer owned business is significant in all four of the main meat sectors."

Roberts counselled against xenophobia, but added: "We would also like to see more involvement from British investors."

l Retail food price inflation will continue to fall for the rest of 2009, but will rise throughout 2010 and the first quarter of 2011, according to EFFP's Retail food price forecast, compiled in association with Cranfield School of Management, and published in May.