Mr Robertson said orchards would disappear if farms went

Hugh Robertson, Conservative MP for Faversham and Mid Kent, questioned agriculture minister Elliot Morley in Parliament on Wednesday.

MPs were debating the decline in fruit farming across the country.

Mr Robertson, who represents one of the few areas in Britain where fruit farming is still a major industry, said he was worried by the loss of more than 10% of the National Orchard in the past five years.

Mr Morley, of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said figures from the Orchard Fruit Survey for England and Wales showed a drop in hectares from 23,253 in 1997 to 21,212 in 2001.

Figures are not yet available for 2002.

Mr Robertson said: "If fruit farming goes then all those orchards go - and the result for the environment will be very serious indeed.

"The fruit industry can compete in the modern environment.

"It's got a lot going for it, it's wholly unsubsidised and it produces high quality produce."

Mr Robertson also expressed concern about the future of Horticulture Research International, in East Malling.