The urgent need to take practical action towards a better food system has fuelled our approach to grant-making over the past few years, intensified by the food emergency of the pandemic. We welcome Part two of the National Food Strategy which provides a comprehensive investigation of the challenges facing the current food system and, crucially, a set of recommendations that advocate for a joined up approach to creating a better system for people and planet.

Amongst its recommendations the strategy highlights the importance of local initiatives in supporting people to access healthier diets, an approach that we have advocated through our sustainable food and farming grant-making in Buckinghamshire. This includes a recent award to support the ongoing development of the Bucks Food Partnership. We look forward to further developing this area of work when we re-launch our Sustainable Food System strategic grants programme later in the year. Crucial to this will be continuation of relationship building with partners, such as Buckinghamshire Council, to ensure a truly joined up approach to improving Bucks’ food system.

Whilst we acknowledge the importance of empowering local people and places through our Bucks’ grants programmes we also recognise the magnitude of the food system challenge. That is why, within our wider grant-making we support the National Food Strategy and are a founding and ongoing supporter  Global Farm Metrics (GFM), an initiative aimed at  reaching a harmonised framework of metrics for measuring land sustainability.

What both the National Food Strategy and GFM advocate for is the need to bring different people and organisations together, often those that hold different perspectives, in order to reach common consensus and find shared solutions.  This is an approach that we take through our  Dialogues programme at Windmill Hill, using the inspirational spaces that the Foundation cares for to encourage innovative thinking and practical action.

Over the next few years we are committed to engaging with those who are equally committed to exploring the future of food and working together to develop a food system fit for the future.   If you share this commitment we encourage you to get in touch.