Food for thought: UK’s pioneering food strategy

A forward-thinking strategy could make Britain’s dynamic food and drink sector a world leader in food policy and production.

The UK is leading the way on tackling sustainability and environmental issues – and, thanks to a forward-thinking food strategy, is now at the forefront of a potential food security revolution, too.

The UK has one of the fastest growing food and drink markets in the world, with a mix of innovative home-grown companies and large multinationals contributing over £80 billion to the economy. Its organic sector alone is worth around £1.2 billion a year.

The new thinking on the future of food production and retail – called Food 2030 - was unveiled in January by Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Hilary Benn. This is a strategy which has the ability to transform the UK’s food and drink industry, and make Britain a world leader in food policy and production.

Food 2030 underlines the challenges facing Britain in maintaining a secure food supply at a time of rapid population growth and climate change. It also sets out goals for 2030, and the changes that need to be made to achieve them in an environmentally friendly way.

Producing more with fewer resources

These include the continued development of a competitive, skilled and resilient food sector — supported by first-class scientific research and development — with sustainable supply chains; plus the need for farmers and fishermen to produce more with fewer resources and fewer carbon emissions, with investment in the right skills.

The importance of food security cannot be understated. Indeed, Hilary Benn points out that it is now as important to the world’s future well-being as energy security.

He said: “We need to produce more food. We need to do it sustainably. And we need to make sure that what we eat safeguards our health. We know that the consequences of the way we produce and consume our food are unsustainable to our planet and to ourselves.

“There are challenges for everyone involved in the food system, from production right through to managing food waste.”

The Government is encouraging a change of mind-set across the food industry, favouring voluntary industry-led measures wherever possible, but recognising that regulation may be required in some instances. It is also encouraging change by providing tools, evidence, and advice to food businesses, and information to consumers.

UK best-placed

The UK is best-placed to turn this vision into a reality with its leading international universities, institutions and research centres. The Centre for Food Innovation at Sheffield Hallam University, for example, has consultancy expertise in key areas of the manufacturing food process and was recently selected to lead a training network charged with driving innovation in the food and drink industry.

The Centre has also recently invested £200,000 in its sensory testing facility, a move which underlined its commitment to sensory science as an "up and coming" area in the UK.

The School of Food Science and Nutrition at Leeds has been a leading food science institution for 50 years; while the Food and Nutritional Sciences school at Reading University is the largest university department of its kind in the UK, with links to international universities, including China and Thailand. The Food and Nutritional Sciences school works with leading names in the food industry sector and generates around £1.5 million of industrially funded research each year.

Leading international names

The UK has also attracted investment from many overseas companies in the food and drink sector that are operating dynamic corporate social responsibility programmes. International names with interests and bases in the UK include Dutch-British giant Unilever, which has two world-class R&D facilities and eight manufacturing sites in the country.

In February, Unilever chief executive Paul Polman announced that his company had set itself the challenge of doubling the size of its business whilst at the same time reducing its environmental footprint; and that key to making this happen is inspiring consumers to switch to a more sustainable way of living through the brands they choose.

Then there is US company Heinz which is “committed to reducing its environmental footprint and protecting natural resources for future generations” and has also rolled out its global continuous improvement system to 25 factories around the world. These include its sites in North America and Europe including the UK, the Netherlands, Spain and Italy.

Ardo UK Ltd, the British arm of Belgium-based company Ardo, produces frozen vegetables, fruit, pasta and rice and has adopted a strong social and corporate responsibility ethic, including a vow to “source with integrity”.

And Canadian-based brewer Molson Coors – which has more than 2,000 employees in the UK and breweries at Burton-on-Trent, Alton and Tadcaster – is operating an environmental stewardship programme to establish “overall standards for energy conservation and water stewardship.”

Innovative R&D

Swiss-headquartered Syngenta operates at the beginning of the food manufacturing chain. This is an agribusiness committed to sustainable agriculture through innovative research and technology, with various UK bases, including centres in Guilford, Huddersfield and Cambridge. Syngenta UK’s research and development base in Berkshire, meanwhile, is a centre for Crop Protection Discovery, Bioscience, Weed Control Research, Seeds Research, bioperformance enhancement and Product Safety Research, liaising closely with colleagues in Basel, Stein and Münchwilen, Switzerland, at Research Triangle Park in the USA and at Goa in India.

Food companies and manufacturers which are dedicated to developing their business in a more efficient, pioneering and environmentally friendly way are essential for the good of the planet. The Food 2030 strategy underlines their importance and reinforces Government commitment to bring people together to act in partnership, to fund research, and campaign for change in Europe and internationally.

Says Hilary Benn: “We know we are at one of those moments in our history where the future of our economy, our environment, and our society will be shaped by the choices we make now.”