This report is part of a collaboration of food system organisations in the UK led by Sustain. It lays out a snapshot of the local food sector from the perspective of those on the frontline such as farmers, wholesalers, retailers and buyers. It details the major barriers preventing the sector's growth as well as some initial potential solutions for local food to thrive. The report is part of the first phase of a larger project to provide recommendations to grow and strengthen local food systems across the four nations of the UK.

This article explores the affordability gap, or the difference between a household’s actual spending on food and the lowest cost of meeting nutrient needs for that household. The authors of this study look to advance previous research from the Fill the Nutrient Gap analyses done by the World Food Programme. They encourage tracking and monitoring of the affordability gap to support better social assistance programs to make nutrient-adequate diets more affordable. 

This review article examines the impact of gender in the forestry, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture sectors and provides empirical evidence for initiatives which have sought to redress the negative and inequitable disparities. The paper provides an overview of the major issues of women in these sectors and provides useful examples of successful programs in low- and middle-income countries. Women play a significant role in these sectors, but their work is often invisible, unregulated and vulnerable. The article calls for further efforts to eliminate gender-blind and biased policy and governance and expand and share successful initiatives.

This article projects the land use change and greenhouse gas emissions associated with a circular food system and protein transition. The authors suggest land use and greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced by adopting circular principles without reducing current levels of protein intake and that fully plant-based diets result in nutrient inadequacies. The authors also argue that agricultural land can potentially be spared by feeding farmed animals with low-cost biomass such as by-products, food waste and crop residues. They suggest freed up land can be used for non-agricultural purposes such as afforestation, leading to carbon sequestration.

A consortium of European media outlets investigate the power brokers of the burgeoning farmer protests in Europe and how they are turning the outrage to their advantage. They explore the key figures in France, Italy, Poland and Germany, who claim to represent the farmers and investigate whose interests they are really representing. 

This book examines the social inequalities relating to food insecurity in the UK, as well as drawing parallels with the US. It introduces a new framework to examine the many influences on local-level food inequalities, whether they result from individual circumstances or where a person lives.

This book argues livestock systems need to be rapidly rethought to tackle the climate crisis and examines how this tension is governed (or lack thereof) in international arenas. It showcases where productive synergies and damaging tensions have emerged across livestock governance, and where there is scope to achieve fairer and more effective emissions mitigation. 

The book explores how beer has shaped the world during its 13,000 year history. It was one of reasons behind the drive to grow grains, it motivated labourers to build the pyramids and it provided a safe alternative to contaminated water. The books focuses on past and present beers, highlighting the importance in people’s lives through four themes; innovating new technologies, ensuring health and well-being, building economic and political statuses, and imbuing life with ritual and religious connections.

This report by Rothamsted Research provides evidence on the impact of grazing management on a range of outcomes as well as on the importance of field scale, long-term research. It seeks to provide more rigorous assessment of livestock grazing practices which are usually reported as having positive economic and environmental outcomes but which often rely on anecdotal reports. It provides detailed data comparisons of the two systems related to system productivity, soil structure and health, environmental impacts, pasture growth and use and animal behaviour and performance, which may be valuable to growers and researchers exploring the impact of different livestock grazing management systems.