Government’s food plan condemned as ‘not a strategy’ by top adviser

‘It doesn’t set out what needs to be done,’ says Henry Dimbleby on white paper

The top advisor of a major review of the country’s food system has criticised the plan set out by government – saying it is “not a strategy” and devoid of “clear vision”.

Boris Johnson has pledged the blueprint, being launched in a white paper on Monday, will “back” British farmers, after a leaked draft of the document was condemned by critics as “half-baked”.

Ministers say the plan will help strengthen the resilience of the nation’s supply chains and increase domestic production, so “we will grow and eat more of our own food”.

But the government’s own food tsar Henry Dimbleby said the response to his wide-ranging review of the system fell short of what was needed.

The Leon restaurant co-founder told The Guardian the document was “not a strategy”, saying: “It doesn’t set out a clear vision as to why we have the problems we have now and it doesn’t set out what needs to be done.”

It comes after ministers were accused of a blueprint “bordering on the preposterous”, as it apparently failed to implement key recommendations from the review – such as tackling obesity or extending free school meals.

But Eustice rejected Mr Mr Dimbleby’s criticism on BBC Breakfast – and denied that the adviser’s recommendations had been “kicked down the road”.

He said: “I don’t accept that – I spoke to Henry Dimbleby over the weekend and he welcomes the vast majority of this, not least because it’s what he proposed.”

A leaked draft of the strategy published on Friday caused a stir when it appeared to reveal calls for a sugar and salt reformulation tax had been snubbed.

The newspaper said Mr Dimbleby had been shown the final document, and said “there was nothing really there on health”.

The National Farmers Union (NFU) also said ministers had “stripped to the bone” proposals from the Dimbleby review, while Labour said the document was “nothing more than a statement of vague intentions”.

Launching the strategy on Monday, the government said it had accepted “the majority of recommendations" from the food tsar’s report, with policy initiatives to boost health, sustainability and accessibility of diets, and to secure food supply”.

One clear priority for ministers is to reduce the distance between farm and fork, with a vision for 50 per cent of public sector food spend to go on food produced locally or certified to higher standards.

The strategy also sets out plans to create a new professional body for the farming and growing industry, to boost training and develop clear career pathways, equipping people and businesses with the skills needed to run sustainable and profitable businesses.

Mr Johnson said: “Our food strategy sets out a blueprint for how we will back farmers, boost British industry and help protect people against the impacts of future economic shocks by safeguarding our food security.”

But Jim McMahon, Labour’s shadow secretary for environment, food and rural affairs, accused the Government of failing to deliver “much more than a new slogan”.

He added: “This is nothing more than a statement of vague intentions, not a concrete proposal to tackle the major issues facing our country. To call it a food strategy is bordering on the preposterous.”

Kath Dalmeny, chief executive of farming group Sustain, said: “In the face of multiple crises in the cost of living, rocketing obesity, climate change and nature loss, the government food strategy looks shamefully weak … This isn’t a strategy, it’s a feeble to-do list, that may or may not get ticked.”

The Food Foundation called the paper “disappointing” and “feeble” – saying it “misses this mark” as many of its commitments will “flounder without new legislation to make them stick”.

The charity’s executive director, Anna Taylor, said: “Despite its name, the whole document is lacking a strategy to transition the food system towards delivering good food which is accessible to everyone.”