Food Preparation and Nutrition GCSE Food Security and Sustainability practicalaction.org/GCSE-food-preparation-nutrition

So far… Individual Economic Social Moral Cultural You have explored what affects your choice of food and where the food you eat comes from. Individual Economic Social Moral Cultural But there are more issues around food to consider!

A big issue One of the biggest concerns for people involved with food production is… how we produce enough affordable and nutritious food to feed the world’s growing population now and in the future? This is becoming a bigger challenge as many parts of the world are experiencing the affects of climate change. Flooding and drought in particular are affecting people’s ability to grow food. Food security is a big concern, particularly for people living in developing countries, where more people are reliant on growing and rearing their own food to feed themselves and their families.

Food security Many people all over the world are researching and finding ways to ensure no one in the world goes hungry and therefore have food security. The development organisation Practical Action works with people to improve food security with simple but effective technologies. In Bangladesh families are growing crops and keeping ducks on a ‘raft-like’ garden that floats on the flooded rivers. It enables people to have food security even during the flooding season.

Food security in the UK How much is food security an issue for people in the UK? Today 52% of the food consumed in the UK is produced here. The other 48% is imported from Europe and the rest of the world. DEFRA report 2015 What are the advantages and risks in terms of food security of relying on other countries to grow food consumed in the UK?

Debates People hold different views and beliefs on how best to achieve global food security. Organic farming is a healthy and sustainable way to feed a growing population. We are finding ways to grow local crops without GM seeds as our climate changes. We want to experiment with GM crops to increase the nutrients in our staple foods. Carry out some research into some of the arguments put forward to persuade others about the effectiveness of: - Organic farming - Genetically modified crops - Fair trade food.

Food and sustainability One of the big questions about the different methods of food production is which system is most sustainable and therefore enables people to have access to affordable and nutritious food now and in the future. People who are committed to sustainable food systems believe that food should be produced, transported and sold in ways that is good for people and protects the environment for future generations.

Food life cycle Looking at whole story/system of food known as the life cycle is a really good way to consider the big environmental and ethical issues involved in food. Activity: Complete a life cycle analysis of an imported food.

Your ideas Look back at each stage of the life cycle of the food you have analysed and then use two different pens to annotate your ideas of how you could: - Reduce the environmental impact of the food - Improve the lives of people involved at any stage of the lifecycle.

Sustainability issues Use the list below to see if you have considered some of the big environmental and people focused issues around food. If not add them to your life cycle. Can you: Reduce food waste? 7 million tonnes of food is wasted from homes in the UK every year; this costs the average household £470 a year. Reduce food miles and the carbon footprint caused by transport? The UK imports 48% of the total food consumed and the proportion is rising. Much of the imported foods is caused through a demand for foods that are available outside of the UK growing season. Reduce unnecessary food packaging? Thousands of tonnes of food packaging are used every year in the UK at different stages of the food’s lifecycle.  Reusable and recyclable packaging can make a big difference to the environment. Improve the lives of people producing foods? People are involved in all of the different lifecycle stages. Are they all getting a fair wage and working in good conditions?

Consumer choice In the past 20 years, consumers in the UK are spending more and more on foods produced in ways that consider the impact of people and the environment. DEFRA report 2015 Which foods do you think people are buying today that are fairly traded, rainforest alliance approved and/or organic?

Thank you for using Practical Action’s resources For further resources go to practicalaction.org/GCSE-food-preparation-nutrition practicalaction.org/GCSE-food-preparation-nutrition