Cheat Sheet: What is a national food plan, and how would it help our food security?

Sunday, 26 February 2023

New Zealand’s food security situation is dire – so what is a national food plan and how can it help?

One day you can’t find broccoli on supermarket shelves, the next day it’s gone up $3. The next day bread is in short supply.

This has been the state of the country's food system since the Covid-19 pandemic began, and experts are calling for a national food plan to help increase food security.

So what is a national food plan?

A national food plan is a policy that would guide food-related decisions and actions in the country.

It is an approach to understanding and addressing issues within food systems and a plan for making decisions around food.

* Families' demand for food relief at record levels in New Zealand

* We need a national food security plan to stop Kiwis going hungry

The Government is creating the role of grocery commissioner in an attempt to better regulate supermarket rivals Countdown and Foodstuffs. (Video first published on July 7, 2022)

Who would make the national food plan?

Iain Lees-Galloway of Aotearoa Food Rescue Alliance (AFRA) said ideally a food plan would be developed by all stakeholders including producers, manufacturers, retailers, food rescue and relief organisations, welfare organisations, environmental organisations, and others.

“They can bring all the various interests together and have the power to see it implemented,” he said.

It would then be led by the Government.

'Increasing food security and reducing food waste should be just as important as growing the value of our food industry. A food plan could set out that vision and present a roadmap for how we could get there,” he said.

Chief executive of Eat New Zealand, Angela Clifford, said ideally the plan would embrace treaty obligations and reflect te ao Māori.

“It should be co-designed by all participants in the food system including farmers, fishers and eaters. It should be run by a collaboration between government, industry and community.”

How would it make a difference to our food supply and price of food?

“By re-evaluating our priorities we can ensure equity of access is baked into the system,” Clifford said.

The spinoff from this would be that the country would send signals to global consumers that our food was being “made with care” in a way that looked after people.

“We cannot be a ‘food nation’ if our own people don’t have access to good food.”

Eat NZ chief executive Angela Clifford says a national food plan will help the country’s food security issues.

Galloway said the increasing cost-of-living and the disruption of pandemics and disasters had created considerably more insecurity. Demand for food parcels was at record levels. Foodbanks and food rescue organisations were struggling to meet the need.

'Our food system needs to be much more resilient than it is. We shouldn't have empty shelves in New Zealand. Any plan should make that the top priority.'

But how much would setting this up cost taxpayers?

This really depended on the final design of the plan, Clifford said.

“The real question is the cost of not implementing a plan. The current situation leaves us hungry, unwell and ecologically diminished. That’s its true cost.

“All it takes is government will and re-alignment towards our domestic food system. Given it’s an election year I would fully expect political parties to have a food security plan as part of their offering to voters. Hungry people do not make happy citizens.”

Would this mean we have to stop exporting?

New Zealand makes enough food for 40 million global consumers, and we exported a record $52.2 billion of food and fibre in the year to June 30 last year.

But Clifford said we didn’t need to give the moneymaker up.

“We don’t need to reduce what we export, rather we need to re-prioritise how we feed our own 5 million.”

That would mean ensuring that New Zealanders had access to the best food, and exporting the surplus, she said.

Do other countries have national food plans?

Many first-world countries have some plan or policy in place to manage their food.

Our siblings across the ditch committed to their national food plan in 2010, with goals to achieve by 2025.

Australia produced enough food to feed its population twice over – and the Australian National Food Plan focused on four points: growing exports, having a thriving industry, its people and sustainability.

The food plan committed to having a high level of food security by improving access to safe and nutritious food for those living in remote communities or struggling with disadvantage by supporting a competitive local food industry and open markets.

It established the Australian Council on Food to engage with industry and community leaders, consider long-term strategic challenges for the food system and provide advice to the government in implementing the National Food Plan. It also reviewed the plan every five years to ensure its was meeting its food policy aims.

How long would it take for us to implement our own?

Tric Malcolm, chief executive of Kore Hiakai Zero Hunger Collective, said some of the food industry was already willing to get on board.

“All the recommendations from the Commerce Commission are there ready to go, Fit for a Better World is there ready to go, the Tiaki promise is there ready to go, the Mana Kai Framework, the Living Wage is there ready to go, the Kai Commitment is there ready to go.

“We have some tools to guide us as we build a national food strategy or framework. Let’s start with using the tools in front of us to get moving.

“Some of us need to be brave and take the first steps. We just need to be willing to get it a little bit wrong in order to get it right in the longer term.”