In July 2025, the UK Government launched a major update to its National Food Strategy, setting out a long-term vision for a healthier, more sustainable and more resilient food system in England. While many of its ambitions are still to be matched with detailed policy and funding, the strategy’s focus on access, justice, sustainability and local food culture offers real hope, and it aligns closely with the incredible work already happening across Sheffield.
So, what’s in this new food strategy and how can it help unlock a brighter food future for Sheffield?
The government’s updated food strategy is built around ten priority outcomes, grouped under themes like healthier diets, sustainable production, fairer access, good jobs, and vibrant food cultures. It presents food not just as a commodity, but as a system, one that shapes our health, our environment, and our economy.
Importantly, it also acknowledges that many parts of the country already are doing the work; growing food locally, redistributing surplus, training new growers, reducing waste and helping people reconnect with cooking and culture. Now the question is: will national policy and government action catch up and invest in those efforts?
Here in Sheffield, we know that food justice isn’t a distant idea; it’s a daily necessity. The rising cost of living, growing food insecurity, and lack of access to healthy, affordable, culturally appropriate food are affecting thousands of households.
But across the city, community-led responses are already shaping a more hopeful future, and in many ways, Sheffield is ahead of the curve.
ShefFood’s Local Food Action Plan, created in 2023 and updated in 2025, lays out a roadmap for a fairer, greener and more resilient food system for the city. It’s organised around five core themes: Food & Health, Growing & Composting, Good Food Economy, Community Food Provision and Food Citizenship, all of which mirror the government’s new strategy.
The national strategy talks about “universal access to affordable, healthy food.” That’s already being made a reality by the countless organisations featured on ShefFood’s new Community Food Provision Map, from Ammi’s Kitchen and ShipShape Hub, to the Burngreave Ashram and Sheffield Food Chain.
These groups are not just cooking and delivering food, they’re giving care, connection and culture. They’re the grassroots safety net supporting those hardest hit by the cost-of-living crisis and, in many cases, run entirely by Sheffield volunteers.
Organisations like Food Works and Cooperation Town are saving tonnes of surplus food each year and redistributing it via social supermarkets and community hubs. Meanwhile, Green Estate CIC is turning local green waste into compost, showing how a circular food economy can reduce waste while enriching the soil.
Sheffield is also home to a growing movement of agroecological, organic and community-centred growers. Regather, Moss Valley Market Garden, Sheffield Organic Growers, and the newly revived Norton Nurseries, taken on by Food Works, are all practising sustainable growing methods, feeding communities while protecting nature.
Projects like Grow UK and Percy Street CIC grow food and skills, boosting young people’s confidence, reducing social isolation, and creating work pathways with their training and workshop schemes. Other groups like Bags of Taste and Blend Culinary Foundation offer food education that reconnects people with cooking, nutrition, and local produce, fostering food knowledge. This aligns with the government’s aim to develop a skilled regional food workforce.
The government’s new food strategy highlights the need for sustainable growth in the food sector, with a focus on productivity, innovation, and supporting a skilled workforce across every region. It also calls for transparent supply chains and investment in industries that can deliver healthier, more resilient food production.
In Sheffield, goals are advancing via co-ops, social enterprises, and community-led food businesses. Regather and Cooperation Town are worker-led co-ops developing local supply chains. Food Works redistributes surplus food and reinvests profits into community wellbeing. Minority-led groups like United Women’s Affiliation, ADIRA, and SACHMA help ensure food access and opportunities throughout the city for all. ShefFood’s Good Food Economy Working Group unites growers, producers, enterprises, and institutions to promote fair food systems and support thriving local food economies.
A hopeful aspect of the national strategy is its call for coordinated efforts across government and communities. Sheffield illustrates this already. Through ShefFood, the city’s food partnership, we work with Sheffield City Council, both Sheffield universities, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, and other institutions to create food policies and projects that centre health, sustainability and equity. These partnerships are vital and should be supported by national funding and frameworks.
The government has promised that detailed policy, indicators and funding pathways will follow in the next phase. For places like Sheffield, we’re ready. The systems, the partnerships, and the people are already in place. What we need now is sustained national investment, supportive policy, and a willingness to learn from what’s already working.
Sheffield is showing how a city can tackle food insecurity, restore nature, train future growers, and celebrate local food culture, all at the same time. With the right support, we could go even further.
Want to be part of a fairer food future for Sheffield? Here’s how you can get involved: Explore ShefFood’s Community Food Provision Map on sheffood.org.uk, join one of our Working Groups, follow us on social media @sheffoodsocial or sign up to our newsletter via our website.
