Anne Dolamore, Sustain's Chair, today warmly welcomed the MBE awarded to the organisation's Co-ordinator, Jeanette Longfield, in the New Year's Honours, as another sign that at long last sustainable food and farming policy is being taken seriously.
"For decades, the calamitous state of our food and farming system has been ignored or paid only lip service to by successive governments. This well-deserved honour not only acknowledges Jeanette Longfield's hard work over the past 20 years, but also the efforts of her talented and energetic team, and the extraordinary breadth and depth of expertise in Sustain's membership(1) and networks."
Other recent signs of success in sustainable food and farming campaigns include the following:
- In 2006, the media regulator Ofcom recommended new rules to restrict TV junk food advertising, and the government launched rules to improve the quality of school food, to protect children's health. Sustain's Children's Food Campaign, a major driving force behind these successes, originally began in the early 1990s.
- 2006 saw the highest ever sales of organic food, plus government policies to support more growth in this sector. Sustain's Organic Targets Campaign ran for three years from 1999, to ensure that the government remains committed to supporting sustainable farming.
- The government's Food Standards Agency has championed "traffic light" labelling for many food products to help people choose a healthier diet. Campaigns for clearer food labelling, including by Sustain and its members, date back to the mid-1980s.
- More and more cities are developing sustainable food and farming strategies, including London's Mayoral Food Strategy (2006) to which Sustain contributed extensively.
- The government has acknowledged the importance of sustainable food in public procurement. Sustain's Good Food on the Public Plate project has helped several major hospitals to introduce fresh, healthy and local food onto their menus.
The recognition of Sustain's ground-breaking work is well timed, as 2007 is the national Year of Food and Farming in Schools(2). Jeanette Longfield commented, I am absolutely delighted to be honoured, and look forward to continuing to work with Sustain's member organisations to ensure that, with growing public support, food and agriculture policies protect health and the environment, and promote a more equitable food system.
ENDS
Phone: Anne Dolamore 020-7924-3966; Jeanette Longfield 0203 5596 777 (w) 020-8566-1761 (h)
Notes
- 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. We represent around 100 national public-interest organisations, and are independent from the agri-food industry. Sustain is a not-for-profit organisation and a registered charity.
- See: http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/2006/061129b.htm
Published Wednesday 3 January 2007
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.
