One area of focus was reducing the island’s reliance on imported food through greater support for local agriculture, Thomas said.
He said one of his first meetings in the role was with the Manx National Farmers’ Union, with discussions focusing on maximising local production and reducing supply risks.
He also highlighted the need to improve storage and warehouse capacity.
Thomas said there was “substantial building going on” on Cooil Road in Braddan, to “optimise the amount of storage we have”.
But the island’s ability to maintain supplies remained closely linked to the reliability of its transport connections, he said.
He said: “We had the worst possible situation at the end of October where we had some runway lights out on our airport and we had storms at the harbour.”
Improvements were needed at the airport, including air traffic control services, to help provide more reliable and affordable routes, he added.
The ard-shirveishagh said sea connectivity was another priority, with the government facing ongoing questions about the Steam Packet’s vessels and the suitability of the new vessel for Douglas Harbour.
He confirmed that the purchase of another vessel remains on pause until harbour issues, including the need for dredging, have been addressed.
