The UK Food System is making its most ambitious rethink in decades to reconstruct the way the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) programme sets £47.5 million practical action to reconstruct the way food is grown, produced and consumed.
The findings, published along with 12 academic papers in the Royal Society B philosophical deal, call for healthier diets, stronger communities and lower environmental impacts across the country.
The five-year Transforming UK Food Systems program launched in 2021 brings together over 200 partners from universities, government, industry and charities.
Its mission is clear. It places public health and the natural environment at the heart of how food is produced and eaten, building long-term resilience in the supply chain.
Why is the food system important?
Food is not only a central focus of health and well-being, but also a major driver of climate change, biodiversity losses and economic inequality.
Poor diet contributes to obesity and chronic disease, while agriculture and supply chains generate significant greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, millions face barriers to access affordable, nutritious diets.
The UKRI program highlights that modifying the food system can lock multiple benefits at once, including reducing emissions, improving health, increasing productivity, and supporting farmers.
By coordinating research, policies and practices, this initiative seeks to participate in the point between diet, the environment and social equity.
Five Themes for Conversion
The 27 actions are grouped under five interconnected themes, each dealing with a critical part of the food system.
Renewed production calls for independent advice for farmers, long-term monitoring of the “lighthouse” demonstration farms, environmental and financial outcomes.
Manufacturing and supply chains prioritize UK pulse incentives, laws requiring redistributing of surplus food, and new digital platforms localizing logistics.
The food environment focuses on supermarket interventions, extended voucher schemes, clearer labeling and reorganised menus in schools and hospitals.
Empowered communities aim to strengthen local food companies, strengthen the power of rebalancing supply chains in favor of producers, and embed the voices of the community in their decision-making.
Policy and governance recommendations include the application of systems thinking to public procurement, improved local national coordination, and research into food systems across governments.
Research highlights policy formation
The program’s research portfolio has already produced real-world impacts and generates insights.
The school breakfast trials reveal that children can easily accept high-fiber bread and provide a simple fix to the UK’s “fiber gap.”
At hospitals, careful menu swaps could reduce diet-related carbon footprint by nearly 20% without changing recipes.
Food affordability remains an important focus. Expanding the voucher scheme could make healthier and sustainable foods more accessible to low-income households.
Meanwhile, the proposed “SUS-Health Index” creates simple combination labels that show both nutrition and environmental scores, leading shoppers to better choices at a glance.
On the supply side, UK-grown beans and peas are defended as affordable protein-rich, climate-friendly staples that can support household farming while reducing their dependence on imports.
Build a healthier community
Community empowerment is woven throughout the program. While strengthening food cooperatives and social enterprises is seen as essential to improving resilience, changing supply chain dynamics could have a greater impact on farmers and small-scale producers.
Importantly, the program highlights co-production. Ensures that communities have a say in shaping food strategies that have a direct impact.
Next-generation training
Beyond immediate intervention, this initiative invests in long-term expertise.
The PhD training center hosts 56 students in three cohorts and builds next-generation food system experts who can tackle complex, interdisciplinary challenges.
National Strategy Blueprint
As the UK government continues to shape its food strategy, UKRI evidence provides timely and practical recommendations.
This study shows that progressive changes such as adjusting public sector menus and mandating redistributing of surplus foods can provide measurable benefits today, while preparing the basis for long-term change.
By connecting researchers with policymakers, businesses and communities, the program creates a blueprint for food systems that are healthier and more equitable, but also resilient to global shocks.
Towards a sustainable food system
The vision is ambitious, but achievable. It’s a diet that benefits both people and the planet, agricultural practices that regenerate rather than deplete, and a supply chain that shares values more equitably.
Collaboration is at the heart of this transformation as stakeholders across society work together to rethink how food can be produced, sold, eaten and eaten.
The Transforming UK Food Systems programme shows that solutions already exist and coordinated actions allow the UK to lead the creation of food systems that are tailored to the future.
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