Council takes bold steps to end food poverty and tackle climate emergency

Fife Council members approved the Food4Fife Strategy, a crucial first step in creating a food system that improves access to affordable food for all while addressing the pressing issue of the climate emergency, at today’s Cabinet meeting, 9 May, 2024.

The Food4Fife Strategy sets the direction and focus of food activities across the region for the next 5 years. By reducing reliance on imported foods, enhancing local food security, and fostering sustainable practices, the strategy combats food poverty and contributes to mitigating the climate crisis.

With a sharpened focus on accessibility, affordability, and nutrition, the strategy aims to help tackle food poverty faced by some residents.

Fife has a strong food and drink sector and produces some of the best food and drink in the world.  The new food strategy supports the changes needed across the food system so that everyone has access to fresh, seasonal, and affordable food based on the sustainable use of land and assets.

Jointly supported by NHS Fife and the wider Food4Fife Partnership, the strategy has been produced though working with communities, food businesses, public procurement, farmers and growers across Fife’s food system.

Cllr Jan Wincott, Spokesperson for Environment & Climate Change, said: “Food is a crucial issue for everyone in Fife as well as globally. Partnership working is more important than ever as we seek to deliver changes to the way food is processed, distributed, purchased and how much food is wasted to help meet environmental, health and economic challenges.

“The Food4Fife Partnership’s vision is to create a sustainable food culture for a healthy Fife.  We are working to end and prevent food poverty by providing fair access to healthy and affordable food for all. Fife Council's commitment to ending food poverty and addressing the climate emergency marks a significant milestone in our journey towards a sustainable and more equitable future.”

Food4Fife Strategy has two ‘Transformations’ that are priority actions for Fife’s Food system - Empowering communities and Growing our food economy. These transformations are actioned through the six pillars:

• Healthy food for all: Working to stop and prevent food poverty by providing a dignified, fair and just access to healthy and affordable food for all.
• Community food: Empowering Fife’s food community and citizenship through communication and increased access to growing spaces, food skills and education.
• Food economy: Supporting local food producers and suppliers to create a food economy and culture that supports living wages, that’s local, high quality and innovative with good career prospects.
• Catering and procurement: Using Fife’s public procurement for community wealth building to bring local food into public buildings including schools, hospitals and learning institutions.
• Farming, soils and climate: Growing food in Fife that is climate friendly and climate ready, reduces waste, redistributes excess and supports soil health and biodiversity.
• Partnership Working: Working together will be vital. Delivery will be supported by partnership working across all parts of the food system, driving positive change through leadership.

The Food4Fife Strategy supports the council’s Climate Fife Strategy and Action Plan 2024 'Big Community Move'. This aims to support community climate action as well as empower our communities to transform local food, waste and transport to create community wealth and wellbeing.

To realise the full scope of this strategy the Food4Fife Partnership recognises the need to explore new funding models beyond existing Fife public sector resources.