Fresh start for food policy must put consumers at the top table
One of the many issues up for discussion in light of Brexit is food policy. At a glance it’s easy to think that the impact will be minimal for consumers. Or that it might, at worst, affect some of what we can buy in supermarkets. But from farm to plate, the decisions that the Government takes now as it forms its post-brexit food and farming policy could affect every aspect of how food is produced and consumed for generations of British people to come.
That’s why it’s vital they get those decisions right.
It’s not just about the flow of food from UK farms to supermarket shelves.
The decisions taken now will have far-reaching consequences into areas that might not immediately seem obvious – from how we improve the nation’s health by tackling childhood obesity and diet-related conditions such as diabetes, to ensuring the food we buy from takeaways is safe to eat.
As consumers we choose products in the supermarket or when eating out based on a broad range of needs and desires – including taste, safety, nutritional quality and of course price.
We expect and trust that the food we buy will meet these needs.
The horsemeat scandal of 2013 served to highlight how complex current food supply chains are, and how hard it can be to trace the source of a problem. Not to mention how many factors shape what consumers find acceptable.
But behind the simple, everyday decision of buying our food, there are a number of different institutions and departments working on policy that affects how our food meets the standards we expect. You have the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). Its interest in elements of food policy is shared by the Department for International Trade, the Department of Health and Social Care and the Food Standards Agency to name but a few.
So rather than a joined-up approach, we have a complex and fragmented system with issues such as health, the environment, welfare, trade and competitiveness often competing.
This means there are a number of strategies with overlapping aims – such as the Industrial Strategy, Childhood Obesity Plan and the forthcoming Bioeconomic strategy and Clean Growth Plan.
All of the departments need to be on the same page about the nation’s priorities for health and food safety.
Brexit offers the chance to make sure that in future, there are common objectives that underpin our approach to food production – and that consumers are central to that plan.
Defra’s recent consultation on the future of food and farming contains some impressive and ambitious proposals but it doesn’t go far enough.
Michael Gove, the Environment Secretary, has highlighted some of the issues with the system, including the limitations of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), but his department’s White Paper policy document says little about how future food and farming policy can be developed to align with consumers’ health and wider expectations.
Obesity and diet-related diseases, such as cancers, heart disease, diabetes and strokes, are some of the most fundamental challenges facing the UK’S food system, but are not addressed within the plans. Around a million people a year are also estimated to suffer from foodborne illness which costs the economy a staggering £1bn per year.
Reform of the CAP will be fundamental in changing how food and farming works in this country.
As it stands, the Government is proposing that in future any money it gives to support farming must provide benefits for the public – that could
‘Proposals that focus solely on farming, rather than those who will actually eat the food, feel incomplete’
include improvements to the environment, animal welfare or productivity in the sector.
While that is welcome, it misses a large piece of the jigsaw. The proposals do not give enough attention to what we feel is the primary purpose of food and farming – to give consumers food which is safe, healthy and of the quality they expect.
We’ve done extensive research to understand consumers’ views on Brexit and food standards. This research found that 93pc of people think it’s important that existing food standards are maintained.
The same percentage also thinks it’s important that food safety and standards are overseen by an independent body that is focused on consumer interests.
Therefore, government proposals focusing solely on farming and agriculture, rather than the people who will actually be purchasing and eating the food, feel incomplete.
Our research shows that consumers are strong supporters of Uk-produced food – 81pc said it was important to buy Uk-based milk, 77pc said the same for poultry, and 73pc for red meat.
However, this desire is based on UK food being produced to current high standards of safety, quality and welfare. We cannot afford for postbrexit policy to put this support at risk or to open our cupboard doors to inferior quality produce.
This leaves a lot of work for Government to maintain trust and confidence in the system, but there are clear and immediate steps it can take to show it’s fully committed to meeting this challenge.
First, the Government needs to ensure that its approach to food and farming takes account of consumer views and expectations, incentivising food quality and safety along with the aspects that are already set out in the White Paper.
While the current regulatory framework generally serves consumers well, there are also opportunities to go further – for example by extending the current traffic light system for the nutritional value of food, which currently cannot be made mandatory because of the EU’S rules.
Government could also adopt wider country of origin labelling to help UK consumers identify British produce when eating out in restaurants, and not just in supermarkets.
At this stage in the Brexit negotiations we need to see strong, coherent policy coming from Government, not overlapping strategies that could potentially muddy the waters even further.
Creating a new joined-up and coherent system requires joined-up and coherent thinking.
Everything is in place to create a system that is a significant upgrade on what we currently have.
We need the vision and courage to grasp the chance to pull this together for the good of consumers.