The Orchard Project’s CEO Kath Rosen is among those calling on the government to introduce new legislation to help address rising levels of food insecurity in the UK.
She attended the launch of the Fixing Food for Good report in London yesterday (18 March), where The Food Foundation, with partners Green Alliance and Sustain, set out proposals for a new Good Food Bill. Its aim would be to transform the UK’s food system and ensure food and nutrition security for current and future generations by protecting citizens, farmers and food businesses from climate shocks and inflation.
“This is exactly what we’ve been trying to build, just without any policy behind it. At The Orchard Project, we’ve been working with people to plant and care for community orchards for over 16 years. And the more I do this, the more I’m convinced that locally grown fruit is not just a nice side story – it’s part of the solution.
None of this is theoretical; it’s happening already, just not at the scale it could be. What feels hopeful about a Good Food Bill is the possibility of joining the dots, taking all these pockets of work that are already working so well, and backing them with something more intentional.” – Kath Rosen
Recent global shocks, such as the ongoing situation in Iran and its neighbouring countries, have shown just how volatile our food system can be. Campaigners argue that legislation is urgently needed to address this and ensure policy improvements take place beyond the life of any single government. It is only by taking an integrated, cross-government approach that the Government can lead the food system reform we desperately need.
A Food Strategy White Paper would be a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the UK Government to set out a single visionary plan to transform England’s food system for our health, the economy, and the planet.
More than 100 major UK supermarkets, food businesses, investors, NGOs and academics have already put their names to the joint statement calling for the introduction of a new Good Food Bill, including The Orchard Project. We don’t need to start from scratch. We just need to recognise what’s already working and enable it to grow.
Read the Food Bill Briefing
Sign the Food Bill statement
Listen to Anna Taylor, Executive Director of the Food Foundation, explain why we need a Good Food Bill now on this podcast.