Food security rarely makes headlines until something goes wrong. Empty shelves during the pandemic, rising food prices after a period of geopolitical instability, lettuces being rationed due to floods and cold in Southern Europe, and more recently the impacts of the long, hot summer being seen and felt across UK farming, have all served as reminders that our food system cannot be taken for granted. Yet food security and climate action are often discussed as separate challenges, while in reality, they're inseparable.
This was a central theme at our recent event at Labour Party Conference focused on 'Securing Britain’s Food Future Through Our Farms'. While farmers are increasingly on the frontline of climate impacts, they're also playing a critical role in building resilience for the future. As an organisation working with growers across the UK, we see these challenges increasingly facing our network of farmers. As droughts, floods and unpredictable weather become the norm, the question is no longer whether climate change will affect food production, but how quickly we can adapt and support a more resilient farming system.
We need to create a food system that can weather (literally) whatever storms it may face, from economic shocks, to geopolitical uncertainty and environmental pressures. All whilst continuing to support farming livelihoods, rural communities and drive economic growth across the country. For policymakers, and businesses like us at Nestlé, this is a complex challenge to address.
A clear message at the event, that received head nods from all in attendance, was that healthy soils should be viewed as critical national infrastructure. Healthy soils, with high organic matter and good structure have a better water holding capacity, meaning they can store more water during droughts and reduce flood risk during periods of heavy rainfall. Moreover, they can better support biodiversity and maintain productive yields. Investing in soil health is not simply an environmental objective, it's an investment in the resilience of our food system and rural economy.
The challenge we face, is that these benefits can take years to materialise and there are very few short-term fixes. This means that decisions must be made today for resilience that will be tested tomorrow. Regenerative agricultural practices can require upfront investment, changes to established farming systems and an element of financial risk. Farmers cannot be expected to carry that burden alone.
This is where government policy can play an important role. Stable, long-term frameworks provide confidence for investment and enable businesses, financial institutions and farmers to plan in advance. Equally important is ensuring farmers are rewarded for the wider value they create through climate resilience, nature recovery and landscape restoration, alongside food production.
As the world’s largest food company and part of the UK economy for more than a century, regenerative agriculture is now a central pillar of our sustainability strategy at Nestlé. We recognise this requires collaboration across the supply chain, and we've been partnering with organisations that demonstrate how environmental and commercial outcomes go hand in hand.
Earlier this year, we announced a partnership with Wildfarmed, and have been trialling putting their regeneratively farmed wheat into our KitKat chocolate bars. This also builds on our longstanding partnership with First Milk, which has supported dairy farmers across Cumbria and Ayrshire for more than two decades, and our Income Accelerator Programme, helping cocoa farmers close the gap to a living income and reduce child labour risks.
Now the focus must turn to creating the conditions for system-wide transformation. For policymakers there's a real opportunity to reframe climate action not as a cost to food security, but as a prerequisite. A resilient food system, thriving farming sector and healthy natural environment are not competing objectives, they're mutually dependent.
The future of Britain’s food security will not be secured by any one organisation acting alone. It will be built through collaboration, long-term thinking and a shared commitment to make our farms fit for the future.
