National Good Food Nation Plan: consultation analysis

Executive Summary

Background

The Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022 places duties on Scottish Ministers to produce a national Good Food Nation (GFN) Plan of their policies in relation to food. This first draft national Plan represents how the Scottish Government (SG) intends to use the powers and levers it has to work collectively with people, communities, businesses, agencies and organisations to meet GFN ambitions. These plans will also have to set out the main Outcomes to be achieved in relation to food-related issues, the policies needed to do this and the measures that will be used to assess progress.

A set of overarching Outcomes have been developed. These are ambitious and not meant to be achieved in the first iteration of the national Plan. They are broad in nature and designed to be applicable to policies across a wide range of areas. They represent what the SG would like a sustainable food system in Scotland to look like. They reflect the continued need to adjust how food is produced, processed, distributed and disposed of in Scotland to address the challenges of climate change and environmental degradation.

The Good Food Nation Act requires Scottish Ministers to have regard to specified provisions in international human rights instruments, including the right to adequate food, when preparing their national GFN Plan.

The consultation on the draft national GFN Plan was conducted between January and April 2024. This built upon the framework outlined in the 2022 Act and adopted a holistic approach towards greater policy co-ordination across areas that are relevant to food.

Respondent profile

The programme of stakeholder engagement involved three key elements: a consultation, a series of 15 stakeholder workshops and distribution of interactive materials to schools across Scotland; teachers and pupils were encouraged to participate. The consultation paper was made available in English, Gaelic and Easy read formats. In total, there were 452 responses to the consultation, around 400 people attended the workshops and a total of 883 questionnaires were received from children and young people aged 13+. A further 202 questionnaires were received from teachers who responded on behalf of children aged under 13.

Key Themes

A number of key themes were evident across responses to the consultation questions, stakeholder events and schools, as well as across respondent groups.

Across consultation responses, local authorities and health boards tended to be most positive about the draft national GFN Plan. Organisations within the third sector, trade associations/representative bodies and those in the public sector tended to be least positive. However, some of the bases for these groups were small, so any quantitative findings need to be considered with a degree of caution. Additionally, when considering group differences, it should be recognised that where a specific opinion has been identified in relation to a particular group or groups, this does not indicate that other groups did not share this opinion, but rather that they simply did not comment on that particular point. While the consultation gave all who wished to comment an opportunity to do so, given the self-selecting nature of this type of exercise, any figures quoted here cannot be extrapolated to a wider population outwith the respondent sample.

To a large extent, comments made by respondents across all elements of the stakeholder engagement echoed many of the points raised in the draft national GFN Plan. While many respondents provided considered opinions on the questions they were asked, some of the responses also focused on how the draft national Plan could be implemented.

The key themes identified by respondents were as follows:

• Across all respondents, views were generally positive about the draft national GFN Plan and its constituent elements. That said, many respondents also felt the draft national Plan as it stands is too general in nature and rather vague, with a focus on existing policies rather than introducing anything new. There were a significant number of concerns as to how Outcomes, targets and indicators will be measured, monitored and evidenced. There were requests for detail to be provided on pathways, measures and timeframes.
• There were a number of requests for more information regarding how Outcomes, targets and indicators will be achieved. Some respondents pointed to a need for baseline data against which progress can be measured and monitored. It was felt that the indicators need to provide a clear path to achieving the Outcomes.
• A key concern from many respondents related to the funding and resources that would be needed to implement the draft national GFN Plan. There were calls for additional funding and resources from all respondent sub-groups, including local authorities and health boards, who will be required to develop local GFN Plans.
• Allied to the issue of increased resources and funding, a number of respondents pointed out the need for local authorities and health boards to develop Plans in conjunction with each other so as to have consistency across all GFN Plans.
• There were many queries as to how the draft national GFN Plan would link into other strategies and policies, along with comments on the need to ensure that the national and local GFN Plans are fully aligned with other policy areas.
• Collaboration across the full range of stakeholders was seen as important, given comments that the draft national Plan is ambitious and needs a collective response across a wide range of organisations, including public sector and non-public sector. It was felt that collaboration would help to achieve buy-in to the draft national Plan. Engagement by the Scottish Government was seen as central, alongside support through resources and finance. Community participation was also considered to be important in achieving the GFN ambition.
• While there was support for the concept of a ‘right to food’ for all people, a number of concerns were highlighted over how to achieve equitable access across Scotland. As such, there were a number of comments on the need for all people to have access to good quality, nutritious food which is affordable. Many respondents noted that some people in Scotland cannot afford high quality food, and that ultra-processed foods and/or foods high in fat, salt and sugar are often much cheaper options and more readily available.
• Many respondents wanted to see increased availability of local foods, albeit they felt this would only be achieved with improved local supply chains.
• The role of public procurement was seen as an important enabler for local food supply chains. However, many respondents identified a need for changes to procurement practices. It was felt that at present constrained budgets and a lack of flexibility in procurement practices are key barriers to the procurement of local produce. There were therefore calls for more flexibility in procurement approaches; for example, to allow for support for local suppliers.
• A significant number of respondents focused on the need for better education, training and skills so that all people can have an understanding about good food. While some of these respondents focused on education from early years throughout the curriculum, others also noted that education should be lifelong. Overall, respondents wanted to see everyone having access to education on growing, preparing and cooking food as an essential life skill. That said, while education is seen to be important, the determinants of food choices also include affordability and access to food.
• A number of respondents also focused on the need to ensure that people working in the food and drink sector are well trained. This would ensure the necessary skills are developed and that all have a good understanding about good food.
• A number of respondents pointed out the need for enough people with the right skills to be employed in the food and drink sector to support the future of the sector. For example, some respondents pointed out that the number of Environmental Health Officers has declined in recent years. Furthermore, some respondents saw the food and drink sector as having a poor image in terms of pay and working standards. This would need to be addressed in order to attract more skilled workers to the sector.
• The need for changes to diet were suggested by a number of respondents, with references to a need to transition to a more sustainable plant-based diet. There were also some references to the need for more organic food to be available. Linked to the issue of diet, some respondents also focused on the need for high animal welfare standards and the need for changes to farming and fishing techniques.
• While a significant number of respondents focused on the availability of local food and supply chains, there were also some references to the need to take a global view and collaborate internationally as Scotland is currently, and likely to remain, reliant on some imports and unlikely to become self-sufficient.
• Finally, there were calls for clear definitions to be provided so that all people have a clear understanding of the draft national GFN Plan. Some respondents felt that the language used assumes a level of knowledge about food that might not exist.