Our Vision
Food from England
We bring together all our exceptional food and drink producers, organisations and quality marques under one federation, giving them a united voice, while encouraging you, the consumer to shop local, think local and support local.
Covid 19 has made us re-examine how we get our groceries and where they come from. It has highlighted how fragile our food and drink chain really is.
It’s a huge challenge to get food from field to doorstep but the crisis started a wave of innovations and raised awareness of how our food and drink systems work.
In March, when lockdown was announced, we saw the demise of artisan food makers and drink producers, and food outlets disappearing overnight.
A time for change
But there was also a rise of shorter supply chains and local initiatives, such as box schemes and online farmers markets which have helped strengthen the resilience of our food system, and our food security.
This is a chance for permanent change by thinking about how we make the food and drink system not just more resilient, but healthier and more sustainable, and that means buying food and drink from England.
By supporting Food from England your spending will not only help boost the local economy but you’ll be supporting British farming, creating a sense of community, supporting the creation of jobs, benefiting the environment and giving ugly fruit a chance, which means less wastage.
Connecting with the food you eat and understanding food and drink provenance promotes healthier and more environmentally friendly choices.
Collaboration
There’s so much strength to be gained from working collectively. It’s more important than ever now to support our real food producers, giving them a unified voice so that they can continue to grow, raise, graze and produce home grown food whilst allowing the headspace to work regeneratively.
Food from England will strengthen those vital field to fork connections by:
• Providing a strong voice for local producers, highlighting the impact of Covid-19 and Brexit, and identifying means of support
• Accessing business intelligence and represent local producers through direct links to government departments
• Promoting initiatives to increase sales of local regional food and drink through independent retailers and agri-food tourism
“Chemical-agriculture, long and complex food chains, hyper-processed foods and the sterile world of supermarkets are all part of the problem.
But there is an alternative system that we ‘the eaters’ are so excellently positioned to support, advocate and protect.”
Tom Hunt, award-winning chef, food writer, climate change activist and author of the new book Eating for Pleasure, People & Planet.
