From policy to plates: rethinking the National Food Strategy

In December 2024, five months after taking office for the first time in 14 years, the Labour government announced that it would develop a new national food strategy in 2025. Led by the Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs (Defa), the new strategy will be underpinned by four key areas for improvement: food security, health, environment, and the economy.

The government is keen to hear from a range of interested individuals, businesses, and industry professionals. Defra has even commissioned a new citizen’s advisory council to test public support for potential measures such as mandatory health reporting and policies to reduce meat consumption – all of which are likely to shape the contents of the new strategy.

A food strategy is not a new area of government policymaking. In fact, this strategy comes only four years after the last strategy, led by Henry Dimbleby, which shed bleak light on pervasive regional inequalities that restrict access to healthy food. Dimbleby’s efforts were subsequently shelved by the then government when the impact of the pandemic threatened chaos for UK supply chains.

It is therefore no surprise that health outcomes and broadening access to healthy food dominates the political discourse around this food strategy too. Several policy interventions have been made ahead of its publication, particularly aimed at reducing childhood obesity. For example, widely anticipated advertising restrictions have been announced, and the government has published a consultation on its plans to expand the scope and threshold of the soft drinks levy.  Improving public health and tackling obesity have clearly shot up the political agenda and joining this up with food and farming policy is the key to successfully achieving these policy aims. Aligning with the government’s thinking on this will be crucial for food producers to thrive.

Although the exact shape and scale of the national food strategy is yet to be revealed, it is clear that the government will take a more interventionist approach than its predecessors to improving the nation’s diet.

If you’d like to discuss this in more detail, including how GK Strategy can support you with government relations and communication, please contact Lauren Atkins.

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