The Future of Our Food

Hilary Benn has announced plans to assess and change the way we produce our food. What does that mean for us?

Hilary Benn has announced plans to assess and change the way we produce our food.

Mr Benn said:

“Last year the world had a wake-up call with the sudden oil and food price rises. While we know the price of our food, the full environmental costs and the costs to our health are significant and hidden. We need a radical rethink of how we produce and consume our food. Globally we need to cut emissions and adapt to the changing climate that will alter what we can grow and where we can grow it. We must maintain the natural resources – soils, water, and biodiversity – on which food production depends. And because we live in an interconnected world – where the price of soya in Brazil affects the price of steak at the local supermarket – we need to look at global issues that affect food security here. That’s why we need to consider what food system should look like in 20 years, and what must happen to get there. We need everyone in the food system to get involved – from farmers and retailers to the health service, schools and consumers.”

One of the keys to this will almost certainly have to be the decentralization of food production, with more and more of us getting involved in local food production.

For those of you who think feeding the population from gardens, allotments and window boxes can’t be done, then you need to check out what went on in Cuba over at the Power of Community Website.

For those who fear the intensification model of farming, which strips hedge rows and relies on pesticides and a high carbon footprint, then you need to watch this inspiring film - A Farm for the Future - and take on board the fact that if we are prepared to change our diets a little, then permaculture can give far greater yields per acre than so called intensive farming, producing a diverse range of crops within the same area rather than just a single crop, and maintain an ecological balance that positively encourages wildlife to thrive.

For those who want a say in the Future of our Food, then defra has just launched an online discussion document - FOOD 2030 - to invite your comments about the future of food and what our food system might look like in 2030.

It’s great that things might be happening from the top down regards this vital issue - but one suspects that the real change will come from the (local) roots up.

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