The National Food Strategy, on behalf of DEFRA, led by Henry Dimbleby, was commissioned by government to set out plans and a vision for a better food system.
Part two of the strategy was published on 15 July 2021. It investigates the entire food system, from field to fork to consider the recommendations that are needed to tackle the major issues that the food system now faces: climate change, biodiversity loss, land use, diet-related disease, health inequality, food security and trade.
These recommendations will be considered by Government, who will decide how to take them forward.
The Nutrition Society is dedicated to delivering its mission of advancing the scientific study of nutrition and its application to the maintenance of human and animal health, and its President, Professor Julie Lovegrove has responded with the following statement:
“The Nutrition Society welcomes this strategy, with its wide-ranging assessment of our complex food system. Many of the recommendations in the report are novel and bold, but we believe appropriate if we are to truly stimulate debate, and find holistic solutions to the ongoing issues of poor diet and obesity in the UK. A crucial factor is ensuring that any resulting policies are evidence-based and have proven effectiveness in improving diet, nutrition and human health, especially for vulnerable groups of consumers. Interventions should involve partnership between consumers, policy makers, farmers, food businesses and scientists to ensure success. The Nutrition Society looks forward to playing an active role in supporting this new initiative”.
