New vision for food and farming systems

“Farmers have become commodity slaves, producing food at ever lower prices to satisfy the demands of food companies and retailers who can only stay in profit by processing and branding these industrially produced raw materials in ways which obscure the identity of the story behind their production, as well as compromising public and environmental health,” says Mr Holden who is also chief executive of the Sustainable Food Trust.

“The only way to break this cycle is for consumers to understand the truth behind their food and to use their purchasing power to promote an alternative system which would be better for the farming community, the environment and public health,” says Patrick who will discuss these issues and set out a new vision for the food and farming systems which could replace the ones we have today.

He continues: “Prof Johan Rockstrom, head of the Stockholm Resilience Institute, recently pointed out that in terms of resource use, our food and farming systems are exceeding the carrying capacity of the planet and that if we are to address the threats of climate change, biodiversity, water and soil loss, nitrogen pollution and growing food insecurity, which is leading to migration, the only way to address these issues will be through a fundamental reform of our food and farming systems.

“However, achieving such a change will not be easy, at present farmers and food companies are trapped in an escalating cycle of dependency. Although it appears that consumers are spoilt for choice and that food has never been cheaper, the truth is that our present farming and food systems are damaging the environment, costing the earth and harming public health.”