Perspectives: What does a safe, agile and equitable food system look like for NZ?

12th October 2023 By Staff Reporter | news@foodticker.co.nz | @foodtickernz

Trust Codes chief commercial officer Emma Wheeler considers the food system challenges – from technology to policy to sovereignty – that need to be navigated to move to a safer, more agile and equitable food system.

This past year I have spent a quarter of my time beyond New Zealand borders, across multiple markets exploring diverse facets of the food system and supply-chains.  

There are so many trends, perspectives, and different way of “doing things” when it comes to food, agriculture, and technology.

These include cellular agriculture – as opposed to plant-based which is categorically mainstream now; microbes that can eat plastic; to blockchain and IoT and all of the disparate solutions in between.

But, at the core of everything remains one fundamental confrontation no matter where in the world you are, or what part of the supply chain you operate in: what does a world-class, safe, agile and equitable food system look like?

I hate to discuss Covid as it feels like a long lost memory, but it undeniably heightened the urgency to address safety in the food supply chain, and the use of digital tools. This encompasses not just the tools in the form of platforms and solutions, but the way data can be utilised and fuel machine learning and AI models for predictive analytics and trends.

When the pressure intensified, measures and frameworks were rapidly implemented as we came to grips with a very unknown quantity, and we all went into survival mode. An uptake of digitisation and new technologies that we wouldn’t have thought could be implemented with such speed came to fruition.

I was privileged enough to be involved in some conversations recently discussing machine learning and predictive models that were built out in the early stages of Covid to forecast locations and hot spots.

This now seems like a basic function done with ease and not much thought, but if we think back to the application of these types of models at the time, it wasn’t widely embraced and adopted.   

So how do we maintain the momentum and move from tactical to strategic, in addressing food system challenges?

How do we achieve cohesive precision and movement in the right direction, ensuring everyone has access to a safe and equitable food system?

That means a system where science, social impact, education, healthcare innovation – balanced with risk, cultural differences, biodiversity/environmental protection, and enhancement (I could go on) are all taken into consideration, with the added complexity of operating in a global environment that changes in the blink of an eye – often influenced by politics and policy.  

Despite my growing interest, food policy isn’t my speciality, but the impact that pragmatic, functional and future-thinking policy can have is huge. It has a massively influential role in the structure and impact of the food system.

The intricate interplay between components in the food system is truly nuanced and multi-faceted – every single component influences another with a true ripple effect.

So how do we get it right, and what exactly is right? Who decides on the guardrails for technology and the way it can be used?

It will change across different regions, countries and industries and there has to be a balance between cross-sector relevance to translate, but also an understanding of the bespoke requirements for different areas of the food system.

Food sovereignty is also a really powerful topic that needs explored, that is, considering how we can encourage regional food sovereignty while also understanding how different regions can play their part being relevant and valuable in a role in a global system.

It is also challenging to know where to focus initially on when it comes to literacy and education – should we prioritise nurturing technology and digital literacy enabling people to understand how and where to apply various tools, while also attracting fresh talent into the industry?

Or should the emphasis be on educating people around food and nutrition and the transformative role improved diet and nutrition can play in our health care system in alleviating significant health conditions?

How do we divide, conquer, and retain balance in the force?

A recurring thought I often have is how often we acknowledge the value and privilege in having choice and literacy around food, in a food system where those who don’t actually have the luxury to choose where their next meal comes from, let alone be concerned about low nutritional density, is climbing dramatically.

How can we authentically reform the food system to serve the needs of all, rather than cater for those that already have?

Influencing those that matter, whether that be attracting fresh thinking into the food system to look at these challenges from a different perspective, or influencing food policy at the highest level – and we know there is a heck of a lot in between.

The way things have been done before will not be how we do them moving forward, just like supply chains used to be linear, we are facing a future food system that looks nothing like it does today.