The Sustainable Food Forum and the Speciality & Fine Food Fair – towards a better food system for a healthier planet
Harvesting opportunities
I’ve been out of my office more than usual these past two weeks. Two major food events have been early autumn highlights for me: the Speciality & Fine Food Fair at Olympia, London, and the Sustainable Food Forum, also in London.
It was such a treat for me to attend these two events, both centred on my number one favourite topic: good food. To me, good food means more than just food that tastes good; I want to know how it got onto my plate. The planet needs sustainable food that is good for the earth and good for people.
But why go to these events, as a linguist? Because I translate and copy-edit for customers in the food sector, it’s vital that I stay up-to-date with the latest trends, innovations and thinking. If I didn’t understand my customers’ challenges, I wouldn’t be equipped to make informed decisions when translating or editing their content.
Meeting the food system innovators and trailblazers
At the Speciality & Fine Food Fair I had the chance to meet innovative and ethical food exhibitors that are blazing a trail with their artisanal products. It was a privilege to see businesses that are experimenting with new ingredients and formulations and to learn about the latest trends.
I had conversations with exhibitors about how they produced their products and got them to market, and about future plans for selling their products more widely in the UK and beyond. Most importantly I sampled several of their mouth-watering products – cold-pressed gins, organic butters and cheeses, ethical and free-range ready meals. Yum! I was impressed with how well organised the event was – registration on the door took seconds and it was also easy to share contact details with exhibitors by simply scanning my visitor badge.
Making food system reform a priority
On 19 September I was lucky enough to secure a ticket with translator colleague Josie Worrall to attend Food Matters Live’s Sustainable Food Forum. This was held in the sublime venue of 30 Euston Square; also home to the Royal College of GPs. Josie and I agreed that the conference far exceeded our expectations. We were treated to seamless event organisation, top-notch food (par for the course, I guess!), and well-lit, comfortable conference rooms and cutting edge debate.
The Sustainable Food Forum was packed with expert-led discussions looking at key policies and challenges in our global food system. Chaired by journalist Samira Ahmed, we quickly got to the heart of the matter in the very first session: we are producing more food than we need, yet we are still hungry. How is this possible?
The answers to this question shared a common theme: the global food system is the single most destructive environmental force. Agricultural production generates more emissions than all forms of transport combined. But we just keep producing more meat to satisfy consumer demand. As consumers, we are so used to meat being the centrepiece of our meals, but it doesn’t have to be. A staggering 77% of agricultural land is used for animal production, something that seems crazy when we bear in mind that neither the meat nor the dairy industry would exist in the UK without subsidies.
If we fixed our food system it would pave the way for huge progress in mitigating climate chaos. There are powerful food lobbies pulling the strings, and many panellists argued that it’s time to call out these big players. The Netherlands has introduced a policy to reduce livestock numbers by 30%, the first in the world. Earlier this year, I attended another food systems conference that highlighted some other heartening global food policy initiatives - things ARE being done but we need to do more at every level, particularly at policy level.
Sustainability is not a trend
We often talk about sustainability as if it’s a trend. But actually it’s a must. Food industry coalitions and collaborations are the answer if we are serious about climate action. And the Sustainable Food Forum was a good place to start.
We heard first-hand from producers about how innovations in ingredients and processing may hold the key to a more sustainable food system. We face a doubling in meat production in future, as the world’s population grows. And yet most consumers still make their buying decisions based on taste and price – this means that customer acceptance has to be a priority.
There were some heated debates around new plant-based alternatives and meat analogues, and the extent to which they provide the answer. In my view, they do provide at least a large part of the answer.
It was highly relevant that one of the event’s key partners was ICEX. I attended an interesting presentation by Rising UP in Spain, the Spanish Government’s start-up programme to help international agrifood start-ups set up in Spain. As a Spanish to English translator, I’ll be keen to see how this start-up programme develops.
How can I help?
If you are a food system thinker, innovator or producer, I can help you hit the right note in your English language publications.
If you want to make sure your documents are fit for their intended audience, you need a specialist wordsmith in your corner. One who also cares about sustainability. If you are working hard to attract investment and new business to your region, your communication materials become mission-critical. You can’t afford to miss a beat.
That’s where I come in: as a translator and copy-editor specialising in sustainable food and food policy, I’m already helping my customers get their message across. If you’re interested in exploring how I can help you, click the image below to book a free chat.
