Twitter has been digging for jokes after the environment secretary suggested eating turnips could help avoid the UK’s fruit and vegetable shortages.
Supermarkets have been rationing fresh produce after bad weather in north Africa and southern Europe has disrupted the UK’s supply chain (some, however, are insisting Brexit is to blame too).
Speaking to MPs in the commons, Therese Coffey, the minister in charge of food supplies, insisted that ongoing shortages will be a temporary issue that should be resolved in two to four weeks.
The Tory MP added the UK should “cherish the specialisms” it has and a “lot of people would be eating turnips right now” under a seasonal food model – rather than thinking about lettuce, tomatoes and similar fresh food.
It quickly prompted a pile-on ...
Of course, the Marie Antoinette comparison was a go-to reference.