The Future Of Our Food

As part of their Food 2030 project, Defra would like to hear our views on improving our food system. If you have ideas or opinion on how a re-designed system can improve our environment, health, wellbeing or the economy, or want to see what others have suggested, go the forum to have your say before 16 October 2009. Here's what Ecomonkey thinks:

Organising an effective Future Food System for the UK will not require a rocket science approach and will not take until 2030 to be put in place. If our governments continue the work many of us have already begun for ourselves and if precious time is not wasted, within 7 years we will be the proud users, instigators and participants in the UK's most efficient food system based on the principles of Sustainability and Ethics.

Sustainability in terms of our environment (both local and global) and the well-being of life on this planet (ours - human-kind - and all else) is paramount. A true following of this desired principle will naturally include the highest ethics in caring for each other (ALL human life across the planet, despite our differences, similarities and ill-conceived allegiances) with equal consideration and respect.

Regardless of how society has functioned in the past and present lingering, outdated political and financial obsessions, economic considerations will become mere background rather than the central focus of any truly sustainable plan.

A rising population needs to be fed. This is obvious. However, in order for that population to thrive in a positive manner, developing into useful human beings rather than simply adding to the numbers, we and future generations will require a change in the nature of how and what we eat, where it comes from and our relationship to it. In order for us to be FED WELL the following changes will take place:

1. Immediate and vast increase in growth, sale and consumption of organic food supported by:

• Active, effective and practical encouragement for farmers to convert to organic methods
• Clear government support of existing organic standards and certification
• UK wide and local media campaigns will promote the already well researched benefits to our health and environment of eating organically

2. Far-reaching changes to fruit, vegetable and crop farming:

• Industrial monoculture farming practices including routine pesticide spraying and synthetic fertilizer use are replaced by strict organic and permaculture practices including dedicated wildlife areas
• All organic certification guarantees an absolute minimum of current Soil Association standards of sustainability
• Farmers and producers are offered active, effective, practical encouragement and support to produce crops and products of extremely high standards regarding wildlife, long-term bio-diversity, healthy ecosystems, human consumption and land use (e.g. for food above bio-fuels)

3. Swift and far-reaching reduction in industrial and non-organic meat and dairy farming:

• Industrial meat and dairy farming practice including routine medication, confinement and unnatural feed is replaced by strict organic, free-range practices
• All organic certification guarantees an absolute minimum of current Soil Association standards of ethics and sustainability
• Farmers and producers are offered active, effective, practical encouragement and support to produce food of extremely high ethical standards regarding animal welfare, human consumption and land use (e.g. for pasture)

4. GMOs are banned in ALL foods, animal feed and any other unspecified ingredients (e.g. in processed food products)

5. Individuals are fully informed of the origin, ethics and ingredients of the food we choose to buy with the aid of local and national 'WELL FED' campaigns, education and above all, clear effective labelling designed by users for users

6. Imported foods that compete in the market-place with UK grown food are banned except:

• Fairly traded non-processed foods that support financially poorer communities abroad
• Organic non-processed food where no organic option is available within the UK
• Sustainably produced non-processed food where no local sustainable option is currently available within the UK

7. Drastic changes to Supermarket control of the UK food market including:

• Total ban on all new Supermarkets except those able to prove genuine practice of ethical and sustainable retail (e.g. The Co-operative Food's Fairtrade commitment and Waitrose's promotion of organic and sustainably sourced food)
• Standards of ALL current supermarkets are raised to ensure fair wages for everyone involved in the food chain process both in the UK and abroad
• A 50% increase in food supplied by local farmers and growers for sale to supermarkets with fair rates of return
• Conversion of at least 45% of current supermarket stores to 'local markets' containing independent farmer and producer 'stalls' (alongside other UK produced non-food suppliers) under one roof thereby providing us with the opportunity to obtain a variety of products from one location without detrimental effects to our own community
• Reduction in the number of current-style UK supermarkets by 80% within 2 years

8. Community Food Plans in operation ensuring the above as well as:

• At least 40% of all food consumed in the UK is grown, harvested and eaten within local communities
• Food transport costs and resources are drastically reduced by a restriction on food and food products travelling to areas within the UK where they can be grown or produced locally
• Local governments work with and actively support groups such as Transition Towns, permaculture organizations and other local community groups enabling residents to make use of currently under used spaces to grow food for community consumption and trade
• Local governments aim to ensure each household has at least a small patch of land available to grow food on is fulfilled by 2015. Any unused or unclaimed spaces are available for community use
• 50% of communal gardens are converted in part or full to dedicated organic growing spaces
• Free training and employment is provided for food gardeners to work on community growing spaces, teaching, advising and supporting residents with their growing and food needs and re-acquainting residents with the benefits of eating local, seasonal, fresh food.
• Organic and sustainable food growing, cooking and nutrition lessons are provided FREE by local councils working alongside community groups for ALL residents

9. Cost of these changes is kept to a minimum and managed by:

• Effective organisation by users and producers on a local level, feeding into national levels as appropriate
• Funds previously allocated to unsustainable practices such as road and airport expansion are transferred to 'WELL FED' projects

10. Benefits of these changes include:

• Increased employment for those working in or moving to food industries benefits local communities
• Fresher, healthier, less processed, traceable local food benefits individuals through improved nutrition and a closer relationship to food sources
• Healthier environment for all due to lack of chemical sprays, reduced transport emissions
• Healthier communities through reduction in motorized traffic and increased foot and cycle traffic feeding through to reduced sense of isolation and healthier lifestyles
• Global benefits, especially to financially poorer countries previously focused on producing food to sell abroad will, in part, lose the UK as a customer but will conversely gain time and resources to spend feeding themselves (rather than others) more adequately and will thus consequently benefit in similar ways to the UK
• As countries globally (regardless of financial status), follow suit and concentrate on feeding themselves well rather than using precious resources and food to increase economies at critical cost to individuals and societies, perhaps human-kind will find ourselves with time and resources available to embark on global development tasks more useful than killing each other and increasing personal financial wealth.

Have your say here

Further Info:
Defra, Food 2030 / Soil Association / Sustain Web