The Scottish government has been accused of abandoning plans for the country to become a ‘Good Food Nation’ after it dropped proposals for a swathe of environmental and health regulations across the sector.
Under draft legislation published by the government, a series of key areas – such as agriculture, fisheries policy, food safety and social security – are set to be omitted from having to comply with the flagship strategy.
The Grocer can reveal environmental and health groups are up in arms at the changes. They have accused ministers of “hugely downgrading” a policy that has been in the works for more than three years.
The Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act, passed in 2022, was intended to provide the legislative framework towards the Scottish government’s vision of underpinning principles of social and economic wellbeing, the environment, health and animal welfare, among others, in its food policies.
“The act underpins in law the work that is already being done across the Scottish government to make Scotland a Good Food Nation,” the Scottish government declared at the time.
“It is the foundation upon which we will build our Good Food Nation.”
However, The Grocer has learnt that ministers are set to dilute key areas of the plan, which is is due to be published on 23 December.
Draft secondary legislation published by the government excludes a whole range of government departments from being required to take notice of the government’s food plan.
Among the long list of areas also excluded from the draft legislation are biodiversity, the circular economy, climate change and land reform.
The Scottish Food Coalition, a group of more than 70 environmental, health and inequality campaign groups, has written to ministers demanding they return to the original spirit of the plan.
Watered-down strategy
The moves come after The Grocer revealed in July that the Westminster government had watered down the UK Food Strategy by removing plans in the original draft for legislation to back its cross-government policies on health, the environment and food security.
“It has taken the Scottish government three-and-a-half years to write the very first national food plan and this pioneering piece of legislation could truly transform our food system,” said Scottish Food Coalition chair Professor Wendy Russell.
“However, there is a risk to the effectiveness of its ambition if it is only to be relevant for a narrow range of regulatory provisions.
“The whole point of the Good Food Nation Act is to have integrated policy across all areas and there are many exclusions to achieving this in the current draft,” said Nourish Scotland executive director Peter Ritchie. “The whole idea of this legislation was to have one act which means the government has to have a joined-up food policy.
“The draft legislation is lacklustre, has no ambition and isn’t really a plan.
“It will mean that a whole series of huge important areas such as agriculture, fisheries, social security and others won’t have to take any notice of it.
“These are really core areas of government which impact the food system and won’t have to pay any attention.
“My sense is it’s part of general pushback that we’ve seen from Scottish government to try to reduce the amount of constraints it has, because they don’t want to have their hands forced by regulation. But the result is it is massively weakening what was supposed to be an ambitious plan for Scotland to have a joined-up food policy.”
Scotland’s Rural Affairs and Islands Committee has also written to the government demanding an explanation for the changes.
Scottish Green MSP Ariane Burgess, who sits on the committee, told The Grocer: “The Good Food Nation Act is a once-in-a-generation piece of legislation which was designed to put Scottish food at the heart of decision-making.
“It’s meant to ensure that every part of national and local government is pulling in the same direction on the key aspects of food. Everything from health and wellbeing to environmental sustainability is meant to be considered whenever politicians craft any policy – even if that policy only indirectly applies to food.
“What the Scottish government is proposing to do will confine these vital considerations to only a small number of policy areas, rather than the broad sweep of national government.
“For example, ministers setting social security policies won’t have to consider how to improve access to healthy food for low-income households.
“Even agriculture has been left out, meaning policies governing the Scottish food system will be made without any thought being given as to how what ends up on supermarket shelves will deliver better outcomes for businesses and the general public.
“We’re effectively seeing this government attempting to torpedo its own legislation – legislation that received unanimous backing from all parties in the Scottish Parliament. I would urge ministers to take these farcical plans away and rethink.
“The Scottish government needs to respect the spirit of this law if we’re to have a coherent food system that delivers for Scotland’s people and provides long-term consistency for all food businesses.”
The Scottish govenment has been asked to comment.
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