What are we campaigning for?

The Co-operative Party wants to see a right to food. In practice, we have a different approach in the distinct parts of the UK.

In Holyrood

We are asking for the SNP to live up to its promise of a Good Food Nation Bill and asking for a right to food to be incorporated in the Bill.

In the Senedd

The Welsh Government is consulting on new national milestones and we are keen to see a right to nutritious and healthy food in these and measurement of food poverty as an indicator of a cohesive Wales. We are also asking for renewed Government support for food co-operatives.

In Westminster

We want Michael Gove live up to his promise of a post-Brexit food-plan, and we want to see Sustainable Development Goal 2 (a commitment to zero hunger by 2030) incorporated into UK law.

Why is it necessary?

The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs or Global Goals) are well-known and form part of our obligations to support developing countries. Less well-known is that they apply domestically. The second SDG is 'zero hunger by 2030'.

Despite this obligation, food poverty appears to be increasing not decreasing:

• 8 million people in the UK have trouble putting food on the table
• over 500,000 people used food banks last year
• Over 1 million people live in food deserts
• and 10% of the NHS budget goes on treating diabetes

Incorporating SDG2 into domestic law would send a powerful signal about the UK's commitment to addressing food poverty.