“Only we can imagine and build the future that works for all of us. The transformative solutions that we need to survive and build a more just and fair world can only be brought about through collective action, solidarity and coordination, from our local communities and international levels.” – COP26 Coalition
Ensuing all voices are heard requires people/groups to be physically in Glasgow to engage in discussion. Despite this, finding an affordable place to stay is a challenge, with reports suggesting that rented accommodation for the duration of COP26 will provide the equivalent of a year’s rent. This could potentially deter people from travelling to Glasgow – most likely people from countries who have not been historically responsible for climate change, but are facing the most intense impacts. Although there may not be controls to prevent landlords/ladies raising rent prices, schemes have been launched to help visitors find affordable accommodation, such as the ‘COP26 Homestay Network’ initiative established by COP26 Coalition and Stop Climate Chaos Scotland. Glaswegians participating in this initiative have opened their doors and offered to accommodate people from all over the world during COP26. Through this project, hosts can offer entire homes, spare rooms and shared rooms, at a fair price or even free of charge. Although we must still be mindful of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic (which, although it may seem like it, is not over yet), this initiative importantly fosters inclusivity in climate discussions, initiates global friendships, and is even pitched as more environmentally considerate than staying in a hotel.
Figure 1: People make Glasgow. Source: Loz Pycock on Flickr https://www.flickr.com/photos/blahflowers/37221734331/in/photolist-YHa7Qc-pN3zR9-9oS3eE-9s4bCX-hktLSy-7v1VhX-eKumLA-9oP1Wm-eKudFL-eKu3Hd-eKi1EZ-9oKV4t-eKhTxv-eKu2zj-eKi34c-eKhYvR-eKucKS-eKhWWV-8mNh1T-eKhJUn-eKuiuE-eKtYQs-eKhA8P-eKtZyJ-eKub2J-eKu7kE-eKhAvX-eKunuC-eKu9DJ-9rgJa1-nKnUJa-eKu5S7-eKhBdM-eKhLBZ-eKu2Xq-9oP2tm-jc2Yx2-eKuhqo-eKhRvD-eKhNmR-eKukg9-jkLwVp-jc4DRt-aakovJ-eKhx3e-eKhQyz-5jZemf-jcVszH-eKhW8x-eKuogG
References
About COP26 Coalition. COP26 Coalition. Available at: https://cop26coalition.org/about/the-coalition/ Last Accessed: 30/08/21
COP26 Coalition Home Page. COP26 Coalition. Available at: https://cop26coalition.org/. Last Accessed: 30/08/21
The Human Hotel COP26 Homestay Network. The Human Hotel. Available at: https://www.humanhotel.com/cop26/ Last Accessed: 30/08/21
Host a climate justice guest. The Human Hotel. Available at: https://www.humanhotel.com/cop26/be-a-host/ Last Accessed: 30/08/21
Wilson, C. COP26: Glasgow short-term let owners offered year’s rent. The Herald. 28/07/21. Available at: https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/19472639.cop26-glasgow-short-term-let-owners-offered-years-rent/ Last Accessed: 30/08/21
While back in Scotland for a few weeks over Summer, I was excited to read that a local supermarket in Glasgow has partnered with East Ayrshire Council to supply organic food for school meals. Not only will children eat fresh, locally sourced food, this initiative will also support the local economy and the biodiversity of Scotland (See tweet below).
We're delighted to announce we won a contract to supply organic foods to @EastAyrshire as part of their @SAfoodforlife Gold school meals! This means organic food on school dinner plates supplied by us; supporting local jobs and tackling the climate biodiversity emergencies! pic.twitter.com/9xml7172ys
With COP26 coming to Glasgow later this year, I am proud to watch Scotland showing what we can do to tackle the ‘global syndemic’ of undernutrition, overweight and climate change (Swinburn et al., 2019).
Reference
Swinburn, B.A., Kraak, V.I., Allender, S., Atkins, V.J., Baker, P.I., Bogard, J.R., Brinsden, H., Calvillo, A., De Schutter, O., Devarajan, R. and Ezzati, M., (2019). The global syndemic of obesity, undernutrition, and climate change: the Lancet Commission report. The lancet, 393, 10173, 791-846.
For further reading on school meal procurement please visit my previous blog post and the references in the Bibliography
The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly disrupted the lives of children through school closures, interrupted education, and limits to social interaction. According to the 2020 ‘State of School Feeding Worldwide’ (SOSFW) report, school closures truly emphasised how crucial school meal programmes are to millions of children; while also illuminating the cracks in school procurement systems and their ability to adapt. With 2020 behind us there is hope that 2021 will bring change and provide more opportunities. The United Nations Food Systems Summit is an opportunity to rebuild our food systems to become more sustainable, equitable and nutritious. Action Track 1 of the Food Systems Summit– ‘Ensuring access to safe and nutritious food for all’ – aims to progress towards ending hunger and guaranteeing access to safe and nutritious food for everyone. Child nutrition is inevitably a central focus of this action track; opening the door to innovations and investments in school meal programmes with the potential to influence the future of millions of children.
The Importance of School Meals
Millions of children around the world eat at least one meal at school every school day, as shown in the map below from the SOSFW (2020) report. This report from the World Food Programme outlines that school meal programmes are essential for supporting mental and physical development in the first 8,000 days of a child’s life. Despite the importance of school meals to nutrition and development, the 2019 ‘State of the World’s Children’ (SOWC) report reveals that the overconsumption of convenient and low cost processed food, including in school environments, has increased the prevalence of overweight in school age children and teenagers. Figure 2 shows that prevalence has increased faster in low and low-middle income countries.
Figure 1: World map indicating the number of children (in millions) receiving school meals worldwide. Source: State of School Feeding Worldwide (2020)
Figure 2: Graphs indicating the rise in overweight in children aged 5-19 since 1990 (left) and 2000 (right). Source: State of the World’s Children (2019).
The SOSFW (2020) report shows that every $1 investment in nutritious school meals can provide economic returns of $9 in health systems, social protection systems and local agricultural systems. Despite this, some governments are still reluctant to invest in good quality and nutritious school meal programmes and this is likely to be exacerbated by COVID-19 related cuts (SOSFW, 2020). Even in the UK, one of the richest countries in the world, child nutrition is still not fully recognised as a worthwhile investment. This is reflected in recent criticism towards the UK government for providing inadequate food packages to children in England during lockdown in replacement of the ‘free school meal’ programme. Below is an example food parcel, equating to around £5 and expected to feed a child for 10 days.
Reading the SOWC (2019) and the SOSFW (2020) reports, it is apparent that schools should provide healthy and unprocessed food to promote healthy diets and foster development and learning. Choosing to source local food should also be adopted by more procurement systems, as recommended by the SOSFW (2020) report. The report states that buying and serving local produce promotes sustainable and nutritious food that can shape the preferences of children, while also supporting local producers and reducing supply chain length. This is becoming a popular procurement approach in countries such as Brazil and India, however other countries, especially low income countries, are yet to adopt this approach (SOSFW, 2020). The SOSFW (2020) report broadly recommends that cheap, nutritious and sustainable school meal procurement plans must be established around the world as part of the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic; although putting this into wide scale practice is complicated.
‘PLUS School Menus’ as a Solution to School Menu Procurement
The World Food Programme’s ‘PLUS School Menus’ is a software used to easily create school meal menus that source food from local producers, keep costs low, match nutritional requirements for children and are regionally appropriate (de Inestrillas et al., 2020). De Inestrillas et al (2020) provided an overview of the process involved in creating school menus using the ‘PLUS School Menus’ software:
Firstly, the client enters information. This includes where they are situated, what season it is, what prices food products are, what ages the meals are targeted to, how many meals are required, what percentage of daily nutrient intake the meal is aiming to provide, and what percentage of food should be locally sourced.
Next, an algorithm uses this information to determine an optimal school menu for a duration up to four weeks. The output also displays prices, nutrient content and where the ingredients are sourced.
To improve nutritional content of meals and decrease reliance on imported food, Bhutan became a pilot for the ‘PLUS School Menus’ software with a case study presented by de Inestrillas et al (2020). Through implementation of ‘PLUS School Menus’, the creation of nutritious menus was not only quick and easy but also 20% less expensive. Locally sourced ingredients for the menus increased by 70%, therefore reducing dependence on imports and supporting the local economies. It is also highlighted that the software is easy to use, requires minimal training, and respects local cultures and cuisines. This successful pilot programme has demonstrated the potential of ‘PLUS School Menus’ to deliver improvements to school menus without establishing a ‘one size fits all’ approach. The software is currently undergoing establishment in other regions in extended pilot projects (Figure 3), and is undergoing further development to broaden the choice of recipes, including traditional ones (de Inestrillas et al., 2020).
Figure 3: Clients taking part in the pilot of PLUS School Menus in Bhutan, Senegal and Guatemala. Source: World Food Programme website
The Future
Although school meal programmes have reached more children in the past decade, there are still up to 73 million children who cannot access school meals due to financial constraints (SOSFW, 2020). The evidence above from de Inestrillas et al (2020) shows that scaling up ‘PLUS School Menus’ worldwide during the COVID-19 recovery has the potential to cut costs associated with school menus to help reach millions more children; as well as revolutionise school meal procurement to foster healthy lifestyles, sustainable school environments and bustling local economies. This innovation should be presented and discussed further at the Food Systems Summit in relation to the goals of Action Track 1, providing a platform for implementation around the world.
References
de Inestrillas, R.S., Kauffmann, D., Piccini, S., Mastro, C.D. and Momcilovic, P., (2020). PLUS School Menus: the future of school menu design. UNSCN News, 45, 75-82.
It has become increasingly easy in the globalized and industrialized world we live in to use and replace resources such as mobile phones, clothes and food; resulting in a ‘linear’ model whereby resources are used and thrown away (MacArthur, 2013). In contrast, the ‘circular economy’ approach refers to a cycle of production and consumption whereby waste is minimized or used for another purpose (MacArthur, 2013). The Platform for Accelerating the Circular Economy (PACE) launched the ‘Circular Economy Action Agenda’ on the 4th February 2021, bringing together speakers from different sectors and disciplines who all agreed that a circular economy approach is needed to meet sustainability and climate goals. UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen outlined at this session that the Paris Agreement and NDC commitments are a step forward towards emission reductions and mitigation of climate change, however we must go further towards circular economies with biodiversity and environmental protection as a priority.
Food and agriculture systems are at the core of biodiversity and environmental protection and have gained focus as a staggering one third of food is lost between production and consumption (FAO, 2011). The PACE Circular Economy Action Agenda report for food systems outlines three main objectives: to change what food we grow and switch to regenerative practices, reduce food loss and waste, and make use of waste products (PACE, 2021). Figure 1 illustrates these approaches, which would facilitate a more productive and efficient food system promoting sustainability, reduced emissions, creation of jobs, improved food and nutrition security and protection of biodiversity (PACE, 2021).
Figure 1: Food systems today under a linear model versus food systems in the future under a circular economy model. Source: PACE, 2021
PACE (2021) note that a barrier to using waste as a resource is the perception that it holds no value, meaning that companies are not enticed to create innovations. Despite this, Toast Ale breaks this perception and is aligned with the aims of the PACE Circular Economy Action Agenda to mitigate and make use of food loss and waste. As an astounding 44% of bread in the UK is wasted (Zaine, 2019), Toast Ale was founded in 2015 as craft beer company standing out from the crowd by using wasted bread as an innovative ingredient (Toast Ale, 2019). Toast Ale uses bread that would otherwise go to waste as a partial substitute to virgin barley in the brewing process, resulting in a ‘triple win’ for sustainability by reducing food waste and associated emissions, reducing the land and water needed to grow barley and reducing the emissions that would result from barley production and transportation (Toast Ale, 2019; Zaine, 2019). As of 2019, using wasted bread in the brewing process has resulted in a saving of 11 tonnes of CO2e, 108.4m3 of water and 7.5 hectares of land (Toast Ale, 2019). The waste produced by Toast Ale is also valued, as it is delivered back to farms where it can be used to feed animals and fertilize soils (Zaine, 2019).
The PACE Circular Economy Action Agenda (2021) calls for transparency through open source data and information sharing within the food and agriculture sector, allowing innovations to be implemented at scale. As part of their sustainability strategy and to keep their environmental footprint low, Toast Ale do not take part in exporting beer but instead share their innovation with global breweries, facilitating wider adoption of this sustainable and circular process as well as minimizing wasted bread in landfill around the world (Toast Ale, 2019; Zaine, 2019). Through researching the brand, I discovered that Toast Ale is stocked at my local supermarket, and so I ventured out in the snow to try it for myself (Figure 2). I was pleased to see another brand named ‘Crumbs’ placed beside Toast Ale on the shelf – another brewery adopting the innovation with spare sourdough bread from a small bakery.
Figure 2: Toast Ale American Pale Ale
At the PACE Circular Economy Action Agenda launch, Jyrki Katainen, ex-prime minister of Finland and president of Sitra, reminded us that jobs will be lost to circular economy approaches and that social justice must be a priority. For example, using discarded bread in the beer brewing process means that less virgin barley is used. If scaled up significantly, this could potentially disadvantage farmers, food system workers and transportation staff who would be involved in this stage of the supply chain. I struggled to find much information regarding farmers and food system workers supplying Toast Ale on their website, highlighting that this may be a gap that needs addressed as the innovation is scaled up. Despite this, it is clear that social justice is undoubtedly at the heart of the Toast Ale business model with 100% of profits going to charities supporting food security and environmental protection (Toast Ale, 2019; Zaine, 2019).
Although Toast Ale are only a small part of the transformation towards a sustainable circular economy; catchy and informative marketing for a widely consumed and enjoyable product such as beer helps create awareness of challenges and sustainable solutions on a wider scale (Zaine, 2019). Overall, the brewing and craft beer industry is rarely considered as a key industry to tackle food loss and waste, however Toast Ale demonstrate that opportunities can be present where we least expect them to be.
References
Andersen, I. (2021). ‘Time to Act: The Circular Economy Action Agenda’, 04/02/21, Online.
FAO. (2011). Global food losses and food waste – Extent, causes and prevention. Rome.
Katainen, J. (2021). ‘Time to Act: The Circular Economy Action Agenda’, 04/02/21, Online.
MacArthur, E. (2013). Towards the circular economy. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 2, 23-44.
PACE. (2021). Circular Economy Action Agenda, Food. The Hague, The Netherlands.
Toast Ale. (2019). Toast Ale Impact Report. London.
The Global Landscapes Forum (GLF) Biodiversity Digital Conference brought focus to the current biodiversity crisis facing the world and what solutions are being imposed around the globe. Sessions were presented by various stakeholders – from indigenous peoples to government ministers – covering a wide range of perspectives and experiences. COVID-19 was a prevalent theme throughout the conference, with many speakers highlighting that this pandemic arises from a biodiversity crisis in itself. It is evident that food systems and food security are interlinked with biodiversity, and of particular interest to me was the session titled ‘The role of diverse agricultural landscapes in biodiversity conservation and food system resilience’. This session explored the connections between biodiversity and agriculture, centering on how biodiverse food systems can strive towards increased food security in a post-COVID-19 future. Compared to other sessions in the conference, this session gave more focus to accounts and experiences from a range of stakeholders around the world, as explained below. The session stressed that a biodiversity crisis is evident in both the Global North and Global South; and agriculture is part of the solution in both cases if context specific approaches are used.
German farmer Peter Zens strives and advocates for seasonal, local and sustainable food systems with a focus on integrating people into the farming experience. In Europe, the majority of farms adopt a monoculture system, growing one singular crop for trade across Europe or beyond. Peter stresses that crop diversity is needed in order to replenish the soil with nutrients and increase local biodiversity. By using diverse farming methods, farms also have an increased resilience to shocks – which is essential for food security. Peter promotes community involvement in his farm, and stresses that people experience joy and curiosity when visiting, allowing a better understanding of where food comes from. With this knowledge, people gain more respect and appreciation for food, inevitably wasting less and improving their nutritional intake. This is an important point from Peter, as it is easy to ignore the food systems behind our choices in the Global North.
Thomas Jacob, an agricultural advisor at the Peermade Development Society of Organic Spices, began by highlighting the need for different solutions in the Global South, where most farmers are smallholders. Thomas advises smallholder farmers in India on ways to introduce multi-cropping systems to maximize land use. Using these farming methods, food security is supported in the local area and extra income is available for farmers through international trade of spices. Thomas stresses that farmers hold a wealth of knowledge and have valuable inputs to make to the wider agricultural community. Staying with India, Alka Bhargava, Additional Secretary for the Ministry of Agricultural Cooperation and Farmer’s Welfare for the Government of India, gave a detailed talk about how India’s agricultural system has responded to COVID-19 and how they plan to reform the system post-COVID-19. Alka highlighted that India strives for a sustainable and biodiverse food system while addressing food security for the vast population. When rebuilding from the pandemic, India plans to focus on better post-harvest management and improved agricultural infrastructure to minimize food waste. To enable a worldwide transition, more countries should follow India in actively striving towards more biodiverse and sustainable food systems.
A key question during the session was how biodiverse farming systems can attract funding and what direction this may come from. Lorena Friers, Regional Asia Manager for PUR Project, aims to make supply chains more sustainable by forming connections with agricultural communities to safeguard and restore natural landscapes. Lorena noted that most projects involve agroforestry, however PUR Project are strong advocates for empowerment of local people and therefore unique solutions based on the environment and indigenous knowledge are sought for every community. Figure 1 shows a schematic diagram obtained from the PUR Project website, which explains the benefits agroforestry systems can provide to local ecosystems. PUR Project is funded by companies in the commercial sector aiming to make their supply chains more sustainable, and has worked with numerous different sectors in agriculture, from coffee to the cosmetic industries.
Figure 1: The benefits of Agroforestry. Source: PUR Project
Tobias Ludes is a Programme Manager at the Global Nature Fund, an NGO working with food companies to improve biodiversity within company standards and procurement. Due to the nature of online conferences, Tobias experienced some connection issues; however, what I understood was that the ‘Biodiversity Action Plan’ has been established through Global Nature Fund. This is a management plan for farms to implement biodiverse practices, and Tobias explained that this plan has been used worldwide in a variety of contexts, highlighting its scalability.
In the midst of a lockdown and uncertainty about the future, this conference was an inspirational and motivating two days, confirming for myself that MScCCAFS is an important master’s program to be undertaking. This particular session gave the important message that a biodiversity crisis is reaching critical levels globally, however different agricultural solutions are needed in different contexts and regions worldwide. Indigenous knowledge in particular is an invaluable part of the solution. Applying this session to my own context, the UK crucially needs an agricultural system similar to the one Peter Zens laid out, however it is clear that the future of agriculture and food security in the UK is bleak due to the loom of Brexit and questionable government handling. In my local community in Glasgow, COVID-19 lockdowns initiated a surge of interest in the origins of food, and highlighted the challenges associated with food security. Many people who are lucky enough to have gardens and the resources started growing food themselves, reflected in the difficulty to buy seeds and soil. Without access to a garden, my flat-mate Louise showed that even in a tenement flat, some self-sufficiency is possible (Figure 2). These local and global examples show that positive transformations and attitude shifts are happening across all levels and regions, and with greater awareness these changes will continue into the future.
Figure 2: An urban garden in my flat in Glasgow during lockdown
References
Bhargava, A. ‘The role of diverse agricultural landscapes in biodiversity conservation and food system resilience’, 29/10/20, Bonn, Germany
Friers, L. ‘The role of diverse agricultural landscapes in biodiversity conservation and food system resilience’, 29/10/20, Bonn, Germany
Jacob, T. ‘The role of diverse agricultural landscapes in biodiversity conservation and food system resilience’, 29/10/20, Bonn, Germany
Ludes, T. ‘The role of diverse agricultural landscapes in biodiversity conservation and food system resilience’, 29/10/20, Bonn, Germany
Zens, P. 2020 ‘The role of diverse agricultural landscapes in biodiversity conservation and food system resilience’, 29/10/20, Bonn, Germany
