A Food Strategy for the UK?

Our food system is creaking under the weight of climate change, industrial agriculture, soil degradation, social inequality and corporate profits. While individuals across the country are demonstrating their commitment to a healthy, planet-friendly food system by adopting the principles of food citizenship and low-waste, healthy diets, we have not yet seen a government or business response which could provide the collective action needed to address the huge challenges we face.

So we are heartened that the Government has announced the first review of the food system in 75 years, and hope it will lead to a sincere commitment to drive change across every aspect of how our food is produced, sold, what we eat and what we throw away. In particular, we are pleased to see that the review will cover how the food system can deliver healthy diets for all, while restoring our natural environment and providing resilience against the future climate shocks we know are coming.

We hope that the government will also consider our food system in its global context, bearing in mind the global burden industries like salmon, chicken and pig farming place on our life-supporting ecosystems. Amidst a climate emergency, it has never been more important to think of the role of what we grow and eat in how we ensure a liveable planet for future generations.

There is so much that can and must be done: from supporting and promoting the shift to healthy, low-meat diets, to helping farmers adopt agro-ecological farming methods that restore nature, to ending the massive waste of resources and nutrients through on-farm food waste. We look forward to engaging with this review and wish Henry Dimbleby every success with his endeavours.