The Sustain Annual Conference 2025 offered insights from some of today’s most exciting changemakers in sustainable food and farming as we map out a plan of action for the coming months and immediate years ahead.
2025 is a critical year for bringing about change. There is a window of opportunity with the development of a new food strategy, one that the government says it wants to codevelop with us. A new farming roadmap and other policies from land use to children’s health are being worked up and are to be shaped right now as the movement for change grows.
How do we seize this political moment? What priority policy solutions should we be looking to secure from decision-makers at all levels to bring about the long-needed transformation of food and farming? What is and needs to happen locally for place-based change?
Recordings from the event
Watch our Keynote: Professor Tim Lang - Food system resilience, are we prepared?
Followed by considered responses from Kath Dalmeny, Chief Executive Sustain, and alliance members Katharine Jenner, Director of the Obesity Health Alliance, and Dee Woods, Chair of the Independent Food Aid Network.
Watch Session 1: Securing the new Food Strategy we need
Back in December, Steve Reed MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, outlined the government's plans to work with the sector to develop a new Food Strategy and “a food system that works for everyone”. In the months since not much has yet emerged about how this will happen.
With the alliance and wider movement standing ready to put forward urgent positive changes to fix our broken food system, we hear from two leading voices on what the much-needed Food Strategy should include and how the promise that it will be “ambitious” can be realised.
- Anna Taylor, Executive Director, Food Foundation
- Baroness Walmsley, Chair of the House of Lords Food, Diet and Obesity Committee
- Glen Tarman, Policy Director, Sustain
Watch Session 2: What is the action agenda on the ground, locally and regionally, for a better UK food system?
Action at local and regional level is increasingly a driving force transforming our food system, improving health, creating resilient supplies of nutritious and sustainable food and demonstrating wider changes needed at a national level.
The panel of practitioners are working on the ground in and with food partnerships, councils and community organisation, changing local policy and practice and creating local innovations to address complex food challenges. They share their ideas, priorities for action and thoughts on how we mainstream good practice to build a better food system for all.
Chaired by Sarah, Williams, Programmes Director at Sustain the panel includes:
- Katie Palmer, Food Sense Wales - Lessons from Wales on food system change.
- Nikki Dravers, Food partnership coordinator, and part of the Public Health team at Gateshead Council.
- Charlotte Molyneux, Devon County Council - A partnership approach.
- Lee Robb, Carrick GreenGrocers - Community drivers for change.
Useful links
- Prof Tim Lang's report for the National Preparedness Commission - Just in Case: narrowing the UK civil food resilience gap
- Government announces Food Strategy advisory board - Sustain responds
- House of Lords select committee on food, diet and obesity report - Sustain responds
- The Food Foundation - The Broken Plate report 2025
- Nikki Dravers - Gateshead Food Partnership: Case Studies from the North East
- Petition to Reverse UK Government Decision to Slash the Nature-friendly Farming Budget
- Anglia Ruskin University: How to ensure resilience in the UK food system
- Food for Life: Actions for local authorities to support healthy and sustainable diets for children, report here
- Landworkers Alliance March on 26th April - Food In Our Hands
Sustain campaigns
- Good Food Local reports from London and North East, and sign up for national launch here
- Children's Food Campaign
- Sustainable Farming
- Commercial-determinants
- Food for the Planet
Sustain channels
- Follow us on Bluesky and our LinkedIn page
- Join the Sustain newsletter to keep in touch with our work throughout the year
Agenda
| 14:00-14:15 |
Chair’s introduction |
| 14:15-14:45 |
Keynote Followed by considered responses from Sustain and alliance members Katharine Jenner, Director of the Obesity Health Alliance, and Dee Woods, Chair of the Independent Food Aid Network. |
| 14:45-15:30 |
Session 1: Securing the new Food Strategy we need Back in December, Steve Reed MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, outlined the government's plans to work with the sector to develop a new Food Strategy and “a food system that works for everyone”. In the months since not much has yet emerged about how this will happen. With the alliance and wider movement standing ready to put forward urgent positive changes to fix our broken food system, we hear from two leading voices on what the much-needed Food Strategy should include and how the promise that it will be “ambitious” can be realised.
|
| 15:30-15:40 | Break |
| 15:40-16:30 |
Session 2: What is the action agenda on the ground, locally and regionally, for a better UK food system? Action at local and regional level is increasingly a driving force transforming our food system, improving health, creating resilient supplies of nutritious and sustainable food and demonstrating wider changes needed at a national level. The panel of practitioners are working on the ground in and with food partnerships, councils and community organisation, changing local policy and practice and creating local innovations to address complex food challenges. They will share their ideas, priorities for action and thoughts on how we mainstream good practice to build a better food system for all. Chaired by Sarah, Williams, Programmes Director at Sustain the panel includes:
|
| 16:30-16:55 |
Session 3: What are the UK-wide priority issues for policy change across food and farming in 2025 and beyond? Sustain campaigns aim to tackle the climate and nature emergency through food; ensure all children can easily eat sustainable and healthy food; advance sustainable farming; and bring about healthy food advertising policies. In this session, issue leads from the Sustain team set out the toplines on some of the key policy solutions the alliance wants to make happen in the year ahead as well as how organisations and individuals can act to help bring the commitments we need from policymakers on these priority changes. With the Sustain team including:
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| 16:55-17:00 | Chair’s closing remarks |
Sustain: Sustain The alliance for better food and farming advocates food and agriculture policies and practices that enhance the health and welfare of people and animals, improve the working and living environment, enrich society and culture and promote equity.
