The current state of the food system necessitates transformation. However, food policies are typically borne out of siloed departments meaning that decision-makers do not consider the impacts of a given intervention across the entire food system. By viewing the implications across the wide range of food system outcomes in a visual format, policy-makers will be better equipped to show any potential synergies (benefits) or trade-offs (unintended consequences) of the specific policy. A visual tool has been developed, the ‘Food Co-Centre Sustainability Compass’ based on a transdisciplinary multi-stakeholder participatory design approach. Active involvement of stakeholders from the supply chain, public sector, civil society and research communities achieved consensus on which outcomes must be considered specific to the Irish and UK food system. Presenting these food systems areas of concern and relevant issues in a visual format facilitates a systems approach to decision-making for a diverse range of food systems actors. While the Compass was developed primarily for the Irish and UK food system due to the scope of the project, it is fundamentally applicable in any geography.