Sustainable Food Chains

 

    Food is fundamental to our existence and plays many important roles in our lives, both physically and culturally.   We take it as a given that there is such a thing as a healthy diet, but more and more of us are overweight or obese.  And where does the land, where our food is grown, fit in, the rural land which we value as a national asset?  Can the way we use it to produce food promote a “good” diet and make us healthier? Conversely, how do our actions as consumers affect the health of the environment? What of the food producers?  We need sustainable food systems that will promote healthy rural economies. Above all we expect our food to be safe to eat but in a world when the food chain is so complex, who should be taking responsibility for this?