Policy
A FAIRER FOOD SYSTEM Our new report outlines our vision for transforming UK food and farming
e Al Dr
The Vegan Society recently released a new report called Planting Value in the Food System. The report outlines our vision for food and farming and explores ideas to help us move towards a fairer and more sustainable plant-based future. The report was written by Dr Alex Lockwood from the University of Sunderland, in consultation with The Vegan Society’s Policy Team. Alex interviewed farmers and experts in the areas of health, environmental and food policy to understand the food system from their perspective. In her foreword to the report, CEO Louise Davies explained why it was important to present this vision x Lo for the future of food. ck wo She says, “We’re not od calling for just any vegan food system, but a specific, fair and equitable food system and we needed to think through how to make
it so. That’s why this report was commissioned, to help to move vegan issues out of an insular space, and to continue The Vegan Society’s role as leaders in providing solutions and policy to support transition.”
Planting value As its name suggests, the report asks how we can get more value from our food system, both for those who work in it and for the rest of society. It also invites people to look at the food system through the lens of fairness for all – including the farmed animals who are so often invisible in debates around food policy. Food reaches into all aspects of our lives and any successful food policy must consider the impacts of our food system in all these areas. In the post-war era, food policy has prioritised productivity at the expense of all else. To address this imbalance, the report considers four key criteria: • Health • Climate and ecosystems • Economy and just work • Social and cultural value
Issue 4 2021 The Vegan | 19
