"A big shift is needed to generate the next group of players good enough, first of all, to play in the Premiership.
"We need to get the number of foreign players reduced, if possible, to under 50 per cent.
"It will be a long, slow process and could take four to five years but this is something we must address."
Of the current Wanderers squad, only four players are English skipper Kevin Nolan, Kevin Davies, Nicky Hunt and Ian Walker but that, Allardyce insists, is a case of needs must.
He admitted he was envious of West Ham, when they spent £7.25 million on Norwich's Swindon-born striker, Dean Ashton, in January, but said: "We've been living with that for the last five years. But we've still got good players here.
"It's is a dilemma, because we are living in an industry that revolves around money. Without it, your club cannot grow.
"It just means that, if there's a foreign player out there of the right quality, you will take him."