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People in Wales are backing calls to make the food system fairer and solve major issues like obesity and access to healthy food.  

As part of the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission (FFCC)’s national ‘Food Conversation,’ supported by the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, Welsh citizens have voiced their opinions on improving the food system.  

FFCC initiated the ‘Food Conversation’, the latest findings of which were published today [Monday, July 22] at the Royal Welsh Show, to provide a well-evidenced view of what citizens think about food. 

  • Welsh Government support for sustainable farming: More than 2 in 3 citizens who participated (69%) want the government to provide financial support through a guaranteed agricultural transition budget to help farmers adopt sustainable farming methods. 
  • Bans on Ultra-Processed Foods (UPFs) in public settings: Almost three-quarters of citizens (73%) support banning UPFs in schools and hospitals. 64% of citizens support restrictions on junk food advertising  
  • A fair food system: 60% of citizens support the introduction of a windfall tax for big food companies, with revenue raised being directed to initiatives that will increase the accessibility and affordability of healthier food 
  • Education Reform: More than 3 in 4 citizens (77%) want changes to the national curriculum and school provisions to ensure children leave school with a strong understanding of the food system and the skills to grow and cook healthy food. 

A national food plan:  

Welsh citizens call for cross-government leadership, and a National Food Plan for Wales. They want a dedicated department or an independent regulatory body to drive this forward, and a dedicated Food Minister who is accountable for delivering change. They recognise the need for co-ordination across the UK and with other devolved nations but want to see the specific needs of Wales prioritised. People identified the need to protect the interest of future generations in a food plan, as set out by Wales’ Well-being of Future Generations Act.  

Derek Walker, The Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, has made food a focus for his seven year strategy, Cymru Can, calling on Welsh Government and the wider public sector to develop long term strategies on food, involving citizens, in order for Wales to achieve the well-being goals of the Well-being of Future Generations Act.  

In the first of its kind exercise in deliberative democracy, Welsh citizens emphasized the need for a stronger food culture beginning with better education in schools. They advocate for programmes that raise awareness about the food system, ensuring young people understand where their food comes from and how to grow and cook sustainable food. They also made a series of other recommendations and observations: 

  • Environment and Future Generations: Linked to the Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS), citizens are worried about unsustainable farming practices driven by the current food system. They see the Future Generations Act as a catalyst for change, influencing the curriculum, and building local, healthy, sustainable food supply chains for Free School Meals, and environmental conservation.
  • UPFs: The Welsh Government has considered regulations like ‘meal deal’ controls and a ban on drink refills to combat the public health crisis caused by UPFs.
  • Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS): Citizens from Wales and the wider UK food conversation want fair support for farmers and for them to receive a fair price for their products.

Sue Pritchard, CEO, Food, Farming and Countryside Commission, said: “People are concerned that our current food system is set up in a way that will negatively impact future generations, whether through a lack of sustainable farming or inadequate education and access to healthy food for young people. Through FFCC’s Food Conversation across Wales, we know families are deeply concerned about the food system’s impact on their children. People want a range of actions—from reforming school meals to creating programs that educate children about where and how their food is produced. Overwhelmingly, they want the government to facilitate a change in our food culture to secure future generations’ health.” 

Derek Walker, Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, said: “Food is fundamental to our well-being. The people of Wales want to see a long-term plan for food – so that food is affordable, healthy, locally sourced and sustainably produced. They also want restrictions on junk food. I am calling on Welsh Government, councils, businesses and health boards to act. If we do not listen to people and transform food policies in Wales, we are storing up huge problems for future generations.  

Derek Walker, Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, and Sue Pritchard, CEO of FFCC (The Food, Farming and Countryside Commission) will host a roundtable discussion, What do we really want from food? at 4pm, at the Royal Welsh Show, Royal Welsh Showground, Llanelwedd, Builth Wells, on Monday, July 22, on the results of involving Welsh citizens in a conversation about the future of food in Wales. 

Please direct media enquiries to 

  • FFCC: ffcc@bbpartners.co.uk  

About the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission 

FFCC is an independent charity, set up in 2017 to help shape the future of food, farming, land use and the countryside.  Following the success of its landmark report, Our Future in the Land, in July 2019, the Commission became an independent charitable organisation in early 2020.  Its purpose is to bring together people and ideas to find practical and radical solutions to tackle the climate, nature, health and economic crises of our time.  It curates research and evidence, involves citizens in deliberation, and tells inspiring stories of action by people and businesses in communities around the UK. 

About The Food Conversation 

The Food Conversation started in 2023 through a series of workshops with a representative group of citizens in Birmingham and Cambridge. The whole process is designed to be easy to understand and engaging, so that everyone – no matter what their background or interest – can participate. Nonetheless, it is methodologically robust, enabling in-depth conversation and deliberation (similar to approaches developed for citizen assemblies).  Ultimately, the project will involve thousands of people through a combination of citizen workshops, national polling and work with local partners, membership organisations and others. 

This, ongoing, rollout includes 10+ locations across all four UK countries, engaging citizens on an unprecedented scale to understand the kinds of changes citizens are looking for from business, government and civil society. Each set of workshops involves about 30 citizens who are broadly representative of their location and invited through a postcode lottery by Sortition Foundation. They spend 20+ hours together discussing and debating the issues, hear from speakers and explore case studies, examining not whether the way food works now needs to change, but how. They consider different policy and practice changes that have been proposed by others, including the National Food Strategy, and identify what to prioritise and by whom. Participants will also come together for a national summit in 2025, to reflect across the four UK nations and share their views directly with senior policymakers.   

About the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales 

Derek Walker’s seven year strategy Cymru Can has outlined the importance of food to achieving Wales’ well-being goals under the Well-being of Future Generations Act.

The Commissioner is calling for Welsh Government to develop a long-term food strategy framed by the Well-being of Future Generations Act, and is committed to working with public bodies and Public Services Boards to integrate sustainable food policies within their well-being duties under the legislation.  

https://www.futuregenerations.wales/work/cymru-can/