On Tuesday 3 October, a cross-sector partnership will be brought together in a bid to transform food culture in the city.
The Hull Sustainable Food City launch, taking place at the KC Stadium, is bringing together 80 delegates with the power to help achieve key goals around improving food sustainability, economy and health.
Already operating in cities around the UK, the Sustainable Food Cities Network is led by the Soil Association in partnership with organisations Food Matters and Sustain and is funded by the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation.
Local voluntary group Food4Hull introduced the Sustainable Food Cities framework to the community four years ago realising a need to support and network with the already diverse and varied food work going on in the city. Recent collaboration and support by Hull City Council’s public health team has resulted in the formation of the Hull Sustainable Food City Partnership and the project has been integrated into the City Plan, which plots Hull’s long term economic growth and development.
Hilary Hamer Co-director of Food 4 Hull and Chair of the Hull Sustainable Food City Partnership said “I am delighted to be here at the start of a collaboration with the Hull CC public health. We will all work together with the city to enhance the environment and the food sustainability and availability for everyone.”
At the launch, delegates will be identifying the key food issues in the city and identifying the actions needed to resolve them. This work will form the basis of the Hull Food Charter which is to be released later in the year.
Julia Weldon, Director of Public Health at Hull City Council said:
“We’re very excited about developing the Sustainable Food Cities Network here in Hull. It’s an extremely ambitions project but work is already taking place behind the scenes and there’s a fantastic amount of momentum.
“We know there’s already a huge amount happening in Hull, but this project will make sure that pre-existing work is all joined up while also providing a wealth of new opportunities to build on that and develop new ideas. From a public health perspective, we’ll be particularly excited about the potential for these projects to improve health and help address weight management by providing extra opportunities for people to access healthy choices.
“The October launch event is the starting point. Bringing together all those delegates will facilitate the exchange of ideas and formation of partnerships. The response to the organisation of the event was extremely positive and a real indication of the drive within the city to achieve these ambitions”.
