{"id":1053,"date":"2022-12-01T22:37:10","date_gmt":"2022-12-01T22:37:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/research.reading.ac.uk\/food-systems-equality\/?p=1053"},"modified":"2022-12-02T15:45:20","modified_gmt":"2022-12-02T15:45:20","slug":"foodsequal-annual-assembly-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/research.reading.ac.uk\/food-systems-equality\/foodsequal-annual-assembly-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"FoodSEqual Annual Assembly 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Food Systems Equality [FoodSEqual] Annual Assembly took place earlier in November at Wokefield Park, Reading as a hybrid event with some joining virtually. \u00a0It was a day for project colleagues from the communities, industry and academi<\/span>a<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>to network, hear about the project work so far and to look ahead to the future as the project moves into its third year. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Being such a huge three phase project, with many different strands, it was important for the team to have a shared understanding and to make sure that they have the right conversations to maximise its potential. During her introductory presentation, Professor Carol Wagstaff, Principal Investigator, said \u201cthe more we do in this project, the more we realise it’s a whole network of things that interact. And if you pull on one string, then something else reacts somewhere else…\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>During the sessions as well as at break times, <\/span>those <\/span>discussions <\/span>did take place <\/span>and connections were drawn together.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Background<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n

To contextualise the project, <\/span>Professor Guy Poppy, Programme Director, UK <\/span>Research <\/span>and Innovation (UKRI) Food Systems programme<\/a>, <\/span>provided a background on the <\/span>\u2018Transforming UK Food Systems Strategic Priorities Fund<\/a><\/span> (<\/span>TUKFS)<\/span>\u2019<\/span>.\u00a0 <\/span>He<\/span> emphasised that the challenge gets bigger by the day. Recent events such as the COVID-19 <\/span>p<\/span>andemic <\/span>and the effects on the National Health Service (NHS), the fallout from the Ukraine war on supply chains and energy costs and now the cost-of-living crises led to devastating consequences in the food and drink industry as well as the closely linked, healthcare sector.<\/span><\/span> He said, \u201cNever before has the role that the food system plays in both environmental and human health been so centre-stage.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Professor
Professor Carol Wagstaff\u2019s presentation. Credit: Ololade Popoola<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/h4>\n

Project Updates<\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n

Project updates <\/span><\/span><\/span>from colleagues provided opportunities <\/span><\/span><\/span>for everyone to how work is progressing across two Themes<\/span><\/span><\/span> – <\/span><\/span><\/span>Environmental, Economic and Soc<\/span><\/span><\/span>ial Sustainability and Policy, influence and impact<\/span><\/span><\/span>. <\/span><\/span><\/span>R<\/span><\/span><\/span>eports from the four community groups involved in <\/span><\/span><\/span>FoodSEqual<\/span><\/span><\/span> outlined community-based activities <\/span><\/span><\/span>and <\/span><\/span><\/span>methodology research that has been taking place ; <\/span><\/span><\/span>the input that newly recruited and trained Community Researchers <\/span><\/span><\/span>are<\/span><\/span><\/span> playing in engaging community members to <\/span><\/span><\/span>contribute to and participate in project activities and <\/span><\/span><\/span>how their research is helping the project <\/span><\/span><\/span>to understand the real food-related needs of our community members<\/span><\/span><\/span> where affordable and choice are key to their buying and consumption experiences.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Other presentations provided updates from b<\/span>oth Themes <\/span>on <\/span>the benchmarking of existing <\/span>national and local food supply chains<\/span>, <\/span>the <\/span>environmental <\/span>footprint <\/span>and impact <\/span>of <\/span>food choices<\/span> and <\/span>the agrifood policy landscape.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The meeting took a \u2018deep-dive\u2019 into <\/span>the projects<\/span>\u2019<\/span> \u2018<\/span>Theory of Change<\/span>\u2019 <\/span>led by <\/span>Dr Tracey Duncombe & Dr Katerina Psarikidou<\/span>. This helped with <\/span>fundamental understanding of <\/span>\u2018<\/span>what <\/span>ToC<\/span> is<\/span>\u2019<\/span> and sense-checked the relevance and applicability of the <\/span>project\u2019s <\/span>ToC<\/span> to current UK economic<\/span>, social and environmental<\/span> challenges.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018<\/span><\/span><\/span>D<\/span><\/span><\/span>eep-dive<\/span><\/span><\/span>\u2019<\/span><\/span><\/span> p<\/span><\/span><\/span>r<\/span><\/span><\/span>esentations on <\/span><\/span><\/span>transdisciplinarity<\/span><\/span><\/span> and <\/span><\/span><\/span>E<\/span><\/span><\/span>nvironmental Life Cycle Assessment <\/span><\/span><\/span>provided the audience <\/span><\/span><\/span>an opportunity to deepen their understanding of specific topics relevant to <\/span><\/span><\/span>the project.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Colleagues
Colleagues from various disciplines engage in the \u2018Theory of Change\u2019 exercise, by Dr Tracey Duncombe. Credit: Ololade Popoola<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/h4>\n

The Goal<\/span><\/h4>\n

FoodSEqual has had to <\/span>operate <\/span>in a <\/span>shifting <\/span>landscape from when it first began- the COVID-19 pandemic and the current cost-of-living crisis, which could affect the direction and outputs of the project. Perhaps, such <\/span>events can have a silver lining, presenting opportunities that one can learn from. On the cusp of the innovation phase, the aims and goals remain stronger than ever: <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n