Charles to explore how world could change after pandemic in radio project

The Prince of Wales is taking part in BBC Radio’s Rethink project looking at how the world could change after the coronavirus pandemic.

Heir to the throne Charles will share his thoughts on the future of food production and the environment in two spoken essays via the airwaves on Friday.

He will praise the nation’s “dig for victory spirit” after people set about growing their own produce during the crisis.

The prince suggests food shortages across the nation may have encouraged many to think about sustainable supplies for the first time and the pandemic could lead to a “transformation” of the country’s food and agricultural systems.

On BBC Radio 4’s Farming Today, Charles will say: “It appears that most of us have given much more thought than perhaps has usually been the case to the story behind our food during Covid-19.

“Food availability was clearly an early issue; perhaps food shortages prompted many people to think for the very first time about whether they could depend on secure and reliable supplies of food in the post-Covid world?

“I was fascinated to hear that sales of vegetable seeds reached an all-time high as a ‘dig for victory spirit’ swept through the land and urban and country dwellers alike decided to requisition their gardens, allotments and window boxes to grow food in a way perhaps not seen since the Second World War.”

He will add: “So, with the explosion of interest in local food, in box schemes and online sales, could a transformation of our food and agricultural systems be one of the lasting legacies of this very challenging period in human history?”

He will also appear on the World Service’s Newsday programme to warn that nature must be put at the centre of the economy.

The prince, who has long been a passionate campaigner on green issues, will say: “As we rethink our world in the wake of the pandemic, it is increasingly clear that the health and wellbeing of people and planet are inextricably linked.”

Charles will call for reforestation and a restoration of biodiversity.

“With so much opportunity in front of us, let us rethink our relationship with nature and reset for a better future. We have no time to waste,” he adds.

Each essay will also be available as a podcast, introduced by the BBC’s media editor Amol Rajan, on BBC Sounds.