Eoin F. Scott Lecture

Since World War II, the UK has experienced a food revolution – along with many other countries.  No longer do we live on what we can grow, catch or process locally. We rely instead on daily access to a great choice of products from around the world, distributed to local stores by a few large suppliers through highly efficient ‘Just-In-Time’ systems of lorries, ships and planes. But in a world of increasing uncertainty, how well prepared are we for any disruption?

The National Preparedness Commission asked Prof. Tim Lang of City St George’s, University London, to review the situation. His conclusion: the UK is not well prepared, and not enough recognition is being given to designating food as ‘critical national infrastructure’.

We need, he says, a national food resilience plan. Part of this would bring in communities across the UK, each conducting its own audit of food assets, needs and capacities. He says that some of what’s needed is very practical – but each action requires major structural change. One big change would be to diversify food sources. Another would be to shift from Just-In-Time logistics – which have got rid of storage – to a Just-In-Case approach reintroducing buffer stocks.

To move in this direction, he says, requires a ‘total food defence’ approach’, and other countries point the way. “We must prioritise resilience at every level – from local communities to national frameworks. The worst thing to do is to wait until there is a crisis when options are always restricted.”

Tim Lang is Professor of Food Policy at City University of London’s Centre for Food Policy, which he founded in 1994 and directed until 2016. For four decades he has researched, written, advised and lectured on the food system at international, national and local levels, particularly in relation to health, environment, social justice, the political economy and consumer culture. He previously spent seven years as a hill farmer, an experience which has shaped his work ever since.

Eoin Scott, who is commemorated in this lecture, was a founder-member of the Festival and its chairman for many years. He loved planting trees, and the woodland that he created at his farm at Redland continues to thrive.

The visit of Prof. Tim Lang has been made possible by funding from EventScotland.

Cover image: Photo credits Johan Lygrell