So, what do we really want from food?

345 citizens from all four nations have now taken part in the UK's largest ever deliberation on food. Hundreds more are starting their own conversations. Ahead of the publication of the final #TheFoodConversation report in 2025, a new (interim) report and Citizen Manifesto reveal what we have learned so far.

You can also explore more in-depth analysis for each set of deliberations here.

READ THEIR REPORT: 'CHANGING THE CONVERSATION ABOUT FOOD' 

READ THE CITIZEN MANIFESTO 

Citizens' calls for action are backed by a new report from economist, Professor Tim Jackson, The False Economy of Big Food.

The report has uncovered that unhealthy food is costing the UK more than £250bn every year. For the first time ever, direct and indirect costs of diet-related ill health have been calculated by combining healthcare costs, social care costs, welfare spending, productivity losses, and the human cost of chronic disease and identifying what proportion relates to food.

READ 'THE FALSE ECONOMY OF BIG FOOD' 

The cost of doing nothing

“There needs to be government initiative. They need to put health before profit”

Tahreen, West Yorkshire

MORE ABOUT THE FOOD CONVERSATION 

Appetite for government intervention

While citizens have deep rooted concerns about the food system, they are inherently solutions-focused in their thinking. The design of The Food Conversation has enabled them to consider many potential ways forward. Throughout the process, citizens have considered a raft of policy solutions that have been proposed previously – from sources such as the National Food Strategy, the United Nations, UKRI funded research, and other charities and NGOs.

Example policy areas for change

Explore the 'Do it, Test it, Debate it' findings in full

“I want the government to start viewing food policy as a really important area”

Nat, Sheffield

Background to the project

Food matters to everyone. It is at the heart of a resilient, thriving economy and healthy, prosperous communities. The UK food industry is worth over £100bn, yet many children go to bed hungry, many farmers are struggling to survive, and the cost of diet-related ill health is spiralling. Globally the way food is produced contributes significantly to the climate and nature crises. Yet, governments have struggled to grasp the nettle on food system policies. Attempts to change anything about the way food works have floundered as policymakers have disagreed about what people want from food.

The Food Conversation aims to change this and provide a well evidenced view of what citizens really think about food – exploring how citizens understand the complexities of the issue and the necessity for trade-offs.

Over 18 months, we set out across the four nations in 2023 and 2024 to understand the public perception of food systems and their appetite for change. We held citizens’ assemblies in Birmingham, Cambridge, Northumberland, West Yorkshire, East Kent, North and South Wales, Cornwall, South London, Northern Ireland, the Lothians, and Caithness, Sutherland, Ross, Orkney and Shetland.

The whole process is designed to be easy to understand and engaging, so that everyone – no matter what their background or interest – can participate. Nonetheless, it is methodologically robust, enabling in-depth conversation and deliberation. To find out more about the process, visit the FAQ page on The Food Conversation website.

Citizens and community groups can now host their own Food Conversation through a free, online toolkit.

HOST YOUR OWN FOOD CONVERSATION 

MORE ABOUT THE FOOD CONVERSATION