Abstracts
Our Food Our Environment
ABSTRACTS (In Alphabetical Order)
University of Portsmouth 19 May 2023
Nasser Alkorbi (POSTER)
Citizen Participation and Strategic Communication through Twitter: Food Waste Awareness in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Food waste threatens food security, compromising the sustainability and development of different countries, not least the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Social media has been employed as a tool aimed at changing public behaviour, with the potential to reduce and even prevent food waste. This research explores the topic with a particular focus on the under-researched topic of KSA Food Banks (Ettam, Ekram, Shukre, and FLw), which are an opposite focus since they actively deal with matters of food waste and show evidence of employing social media in a bid to raise awareness of the problem among Saudi citizens. There is a gap in research to understand the current practices of organisation to use Twitter to reduce the food wastage through taking the local context of a country. To fill this gap research has collected data project collected data from the Twitter pages of four organizations those are doing efforts to reduce the food wastage in KSA. Twitter pages to provide a richer understanding of how the platform has been used to raise awareness about food waste in KSA and the potential for more extensive use of Twitter in this regard. The result of this research shows that food wastage is deeply rooted with the local social and cultural values, so the Twitter can be use as communication strategy to reduce the food wastage through changing the culture of the food wastage in country . Therefore, it has been recommended that the organisation need to change the sociocultural meaning of food which required to change food as social practices. The meaning of food is about the different types of food being offered on different social and events that leads toward the food wastage. This research develops a context specific framework which can be used to deal with the food wastage through social campaign on Twitter in KSA.
Amy Beardmore, Mat Jones, Sarah Hills, and Sanda Ismail (University of the West of England)
Developing Community Leadership for Action on Affordable, Healthy, and Sustainable Food Issues
In the context of the current cost of living crisis, many activists are working within their communities to promote access to affordable, healthy, and sustainable food. Yet there are very few opportunities share experiences, ideas and resources between such community food champions, and to develop the skills needed to create change. Our research sought to examine the process and impacts of the Soil Association’s My Food Community (MFC). This is a community leadership programme intended to create ‘a network for good food champions to learn, connect and take action’.
MFC is delivered through a range of self-guided learning materials, online training sessions and regular virtual peer meetups. The first run of the programme attracted 39 participants from a wide range of backgrounds across the UK. Interviewees felt that the programme helped expand their networks, draw upon inspirational practice, apply collaboration and leadership skills, and promote their work with a greater sense of confidence and kudos. Six months after completion of the course respondents reported a range of positive consequences including improvements in their ability to act as advocates, to initiate and to help others take action on food issues in their communities of interest. In addition, the initiative raises important questions about using the ‘language of leadership’ for community food activism and how grass roots activists share good practice with their peers.
Toritseju Begho (SRUC) (POSTER)
“Mimic diced or mincemeat but not steak”: Unpacking consumers’ expectations for plant-based meat analogues
In many middle-income countries, the increasing population and the improving economy are predicted to increase meat consumption. However, this increased demand has consequences for land use, resource consumption and the environment. Coupled with animal welfare, ethical and health reasons, there is a justification for pursuing sustainable protein consumption and production. Most recently, the focus has been on plant-based meat alternatives that resemble meat. The appeal of new-generation plant-based meat as a meat alternative is that the appearance, textural, and sensory properties are similar to meat, thus mimicking the experience of consuming meat. However, there is much to be understood about consumers' perceptions and preferences toward plant-based meat. The paper is based on a survey of (N =210) meat consumers where attributes which Chinese consumers perceive to be the most important in influencing their decision to eat plant-based meat are identified. Among other findings, the results indicate that the majority of consumers preferred plant-based meat in forms that were comminuted (minced or smaller cuts), suggesting that plant-based meat produced to mimic larger meat cuts such as steak may receive lower levels of acceptance. The paper contends that the preference for comminuted forms may be attributed to the current difficulty in replicating the sensory properties of meat cuts.
Cressida Bowyer, Louis Netter (University of Portsmouth)
ReFurbe urban agriculture project
Re-FURBE utilised creative and participatory approaches to co-develop and communicate urban farming (UF) methods and goals with the community of Mukuru (Nairobi, Kenya). We worked with participants (9yrs+) to create a suite of feasible low-tech citizen science UF tools and techniques which are currently lacking (e.g. for soil analysis, assessing cultivation sites and crop health, irrigation system design, etc.). A qualitative study utilising arts-based methods was designed and implemented to explore the lived experience of participants around food scarcity, climate change, nutrition, mental health and UF. We also developed co-created artworks to promote and extol the benefits of UF for the community.
Leo Burtin , Laura Seddon (University for the Creative Arts)
For the last 10 years, practitioner-researcher Leo Burtin has been developing a body of work exploring the relationship between commensality (social eating), culture and social change. This work led to the development of a socially engaged commensal performance methodology which has been applied in a variety of contexts. This includes The Midnight Soup, a project exploring death through shared cooking and eating and with bread, a poetic exploration of the history of bread and its connection to migratory movements. Most recently Eat the Archives a project developed with Dr Laura Seddon at Manchester Jewish Museum involved hosting multisensory museum experiences in people’s homes – both in person and remotely.
In 2023, Seddon and Burtin continue the development and application of their commensal performance methodology with a new Portsfest commissioned project: From Portsmouth to Salford (and back again). Through food-based exchanges this R&D project explores how Portsmouth and Salford’s industrial dockyards and rapidly changing urban landscapes contribute to the formation and evolution of communities. Burtin and Seddon seek to build hopeful connections on the edges of England’s north/south divide.
Marshada Chowdhury and Ciara White
“HAF” – Have Fun Pompey
Funded by the Department for Education, HAF Fun Pompey provides free holiday provision during the Easter, summer, and winter holidays, including healthy food and enriching activities, for children aged 5-16 who are eligible for benefits related free school meals. The idea of the programme is to create options and support networks for families during the school holidays when they may be experiencing additional financial and time pressures.
The programme offers something for everyone, helping children build positive relationships, promote physical activity, well-being, and offering opportunities to learn new skills and try new things. The programme has also provided us with the opportunity to expand our community outreach and engage further with providers who can offer fun school holiday choices for all families throughout the city, encouraging positive partnership working to safeguard and support our children.
The programme includes a wide range of activities from sport to performing arts, day trips to art workshops, water sports to cooking classes. It also includes family days so the whole family can get involved.
Every child is provided with tasty, nutritious food. Some of our providers are also hosting paid for provision so the programme is accessible to all children in the city.
Shree Datta, C. Pritchard, L. La Camera (Greenwich Cooperative Development Agency)
Good food in Greenwich: Making food in Greenwich Great
Good Food in Greenwich (GFiG) has a long history of innovative work on food and has, since its launch in 2014, positively influenced the borough’s food system. Since 2015, the borough has been recognised as one of the leading boroughs in the Good Food for London report. The GFiG agenda is referenced in several strategies and policies and one key area we have developed that is unique to our work sector specific therefore we can adjust criteria to suit sectors such as retail, hospitality and community
This supports organisations and businesses to take a step towards running a healthier, more sustainable business with lots of opportunities to raise their profile by signing upto initiatives such as Sugar Smart and being Breastfeeding friendly. We have raised the profile of our charter through social media, direct outreach work, attending events and meetings to increase signups. Businesses and organisations can sign up through our website and are supported through the application process to ensure that they are achieving criteria and are supported to work towards meeting other criteria. And we follow up with a one year invitation to renew, celebrate any changes made We also promote free membership with the independent Food Business network and promote quarterly meetings , news, and events We have signed up almost 100 businesses, and by bringing businesses together locally, we have improved the local profile of food in the borough. This presentation looks at the work our hospitality charters have achieved.
Anicée Defrance, University College London, UK Food System Centre for Doctoral Training (POSTER)
How an assessment of the environmental and nutritional impacts of a school’s meal can inform public procurement policy
With current patterns of food production and consumption being amongst the main drivers of climate change, environmental degradation and the rise of diet-related chronic illnesses, changes in the public procurement of school meals have been identified as a potential means of intervention for environmental protection and public health. This interdisciplinary research evaluates the environmental and nutritional value of meals offered by a primary school in London to inform public procurement policies being designed by local authorities. The research uses a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to calculate the meals’ sustainability and a nutritional count, modified NRF 7.3 (Nutrition Rich Food Index), to assess the nutritional quality of the meals for 4-10 years old pupils.
The research highlights five key observations that arise when attempting to communicate the findings to inform public procurement policies: 1. the ability to identify hot spots of environmental impact using an LCA, 2. the ability to identify the lack of critical nutrients for school pupils using a nutritional score, 3. the challenges in balancing the environmental impacts and nutritional quality of school meals, 4. limitations due to the fragmentation of environmental and nutritional concerns of school meals at a policy and research level, and 5. the need for more accurate data and socio-economic considerations to inform policy.
Rokhshid Ghaziani
Food growing in schools by pupils: from edible gardens and planters to living walls
Research confirms that food growing in schools has a positive impact on pupils’ horticultural and scientific knowledge and environmental awareness, where food comes from, and nutrition. A number of studies indicate the potential of food growing in schools to build links between schools and their local communities (RHS, 2001; Teeman et al., 2011). A pilot study was carried out in a Primary School in West Midlands, where children in year six participated. The project was funded by The Royal Society (Partnership Grant). Pupils took ownership for living wall planters and pots and took responsibility for planting in indoor and outdoor spaces, keeping scientific logs, caring for and harvesting different crops throughout the year, evaluating and reporting as well as exploring relationships with insects, bugs and organics. The project provided a legacy through supporting the development of climate science within the school curriculum. This paper presents the findings of this study, investigating a variety of edible plants in relation to growing conditions, and well-being – interconnection with healthy living for pupils. It also presents views of pupils about the project and its impact on their learning and wellbeing. The outcome suggests that every school could be a food growing school.
Mark Hobson (Organic Smallholder)
The Science behind the Positive Impact of Growing Vegetables on Physical, Mental and Spiritual Well Being
I studied Agricultural Science(Bsc) and Farm Management(Msc) before working as an Agricultural Adviser for the Ministry of Agriculture in the South East of England. I lived in Camphill Communities in Germany, USA and the UK for over 20 years, working with children and adults with learning difficulties and managing the community gardens. I have had experience as a class teacher in Germany, run weekly gardening sessions for the Stourbridge Waldorf School and managed and taught gardening at Quinton Primary school in Birmingham. At present, I live on a small holding near Chichester and practice regenerative gardening as well as giving talks to local allotment groups, gardening societies and Transition town events. I am passionate about the impact of the soil microbiome on plant, human and planetary health, and view food as medicine. I am delighted that science can now confirm Heuristic research into the benefits of gardening.
Steven Kator Iorfa (University of Portsmouth)
Food choices play significant roles in human and environmental health. This suggests that if individuals make sustainable food choices (SFCs), there will be a significant reduction in the environmental impact of food production/consumption as well as an improvement in consumer health. However, getting individuals to make these choices is not easy and science has not completely unravelled the key precursors to SFCs. In this study, we try to explore the motivations to making SFCs as well as the values and attitudes that promote these motivations. We sampled 216 adults (x̅Age≈41years) across the UK who responded to online measures of SFC motives, sustainability values, environmental attitudes and frugality. We analysed their responses using descriptive analytical and regression-based tools available in SPSS. We found that motivations for SFCs revolved mostly around local and seasonal availability as well as ethical concerns. Environmental concern and animal welfare were also significant motivations. Frugality, Ecocentric concerns, concerns about altering nature, sense of shared responsibilities and freedom were the most prominent values and attitudes in predicting motivations for SFCs. Identifying these key values and attitudes that predict SFC motives is a first step towards tailoring sustainability campaigns and intervention programs that will promote more sustainable eating across persons in the UK, especially as food prices continue to rise.
Monali Jassani (University College London)
This research uses exploratory research design to understand what policy reforms can be implemented to address the health impacts of Ultra-Processed Foods (UPF) in London, United Kingdom (UK). The research begins by gathering top-down policy suggestions through technical expert interviews. This is followed by a focus group discussion to understand the views of food activists and volunteers on such new and existing policies. These suggestions of technical experts and focus group participants are finally validated through a bottom-up survey of London residents before arriving at end policy recommendations. This research recommends that the government incorporate the following policies simultaneously: 1) Replace instore promotion of UPFs with that of whole foods 2) Phase out trans-fat in all packaged food 3) No health claims on UPFs 4) Mandate traffic light label on all packaged foods and include information on processing levels 5) Bring back cooking culture through schools, corporates and community initiatives. These suggestions are by no means all-encompassing but a preliminary step to break the ‘junk food’ cycle and address its health implications. While several reports address food health in London, no report to date has used a combination of top-down views and bottom up needs to inform policy recommendations specifically focused on health impacts of Ultra-Processed Food Consumption.
Laura Lane (UK Food Systems Centre for Doctoral Training, University of Greenwich)
Beans, Peas and Pulses: An evaluation of UK consumption patterns
The inclusion of beans, peas and pulses in the diet offers significant health benefits, and the FAO states that pulses cover all dimensions of sustainability. Yet, worldwide, the average daily consumption of pulses is just 21g per person per day, compared to a daily meat intake of 112g (FAO, 2019, Semba et al., 2021).
Analysis of the UK’s Family Food datasets (Defra, 2022) show that, at 28g per person per day, the current average consumption of beans, peas and pulses in the UK is suboptimal. Parallel analysis data from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey (University of Cambridge, 2021) showed that a high proportion of individuals are not eating beans and pulses. More than 40% of individuals are eating no beans and pulses (excluding peas), but the proportion of survey participants eating no beans or pulses is falling. By comparison, the proportion of 'zero meat' consumers (5%) is very low. But dietary trends are shifting.
This research reviews the consumption trends since the 1970s and the benefits of increased consumption. It also presents an analysis of the environmental impacts of different types of meals containing beans, peas and pulses, as identified using a pilot ‘Food Sustainability Dashboard’.
Dominique Le Touze, Gail Mann (Portsmouth City Council)
School Superzone project
Portsmouth has some of the highest rates of childhood obesity in the Southeast, with 24% of Reception aged children and 38% of Year 6 children respectively recorded as overweight or obese in 2019/20. The immediate and long-term negative health impacts of childhood obesity are well documented, but despite childhood obesity being the focus of numerous public health and other interventions over many years, we have yet to reverse the upward trend.
The upstream or social determinants of health - often termed the 'causes of the causes' - are the circumstances in which people are born, live, grow and age. Taking a fresh approach, the public health team conducted research into the upstream causes of obesity in one area of the city with high childhood obesity rates. Children at one primary school were asked 'What do you like and dislike about your environment?'. They responded with drawings and text. Responses emphasised the importance of senses in the way they experienced their environment. In addition to pride in their city, children also expressed feeling unsafe and disgust at some sights and smells, leading to disengagement with their environment. We hypothesised that this would in turn limit children's willingness to take part in obesity risk reduction activities in their local environment such as physical activity.
The Portsmouth 'Superzone' pilot aims to coordinate policy and practice to address the risk factors and upstream causes that can lead to, or exacerbate, obesity. A hyper-local area of 400 metres radius around Arundel Court Primary school was chosen to focus efforts on. Four workstreams were identified, based on the feedback from children and evidence from the literature: healthy eating, physical activity, clean air and community safety. This presentation outlines early-stage work being undertaken and planned evaluative approaches.
Rounaq Nayak, Heather Hartwell (University of Bournemouth)
The future of charitable alternative food networks in the UK: An investigation into current challenges and opportunities for food banks and community markets
The study examines the potential of charitable alternative food networks (ANFs), specifically community markets, as a complimentary solution to existing food aid efforts in response to food insecurity. While foodbanks play a crucial role in providing emergency food aid, they often face challenges in terms of supply shortages, limited food variety, and perpetuating dependency on food aid. Moreover, foodbanks may only offer temporary relief without addressing the root cause of food insecurity. Community markets, on the other hand, adopt a social economy approach and aim to empower local communities by providing affordable food options to all community members. These markets operate on a different business model than foodbanks and offer additional vouchers for those who cannot afford to purchase food. Community markets also focus on promoting social and economic goals and often provide additional services and activities within the community centres. By assessing the perspectives of beneficiaries of foodbanks and community markets, the paper examines the dimensions of food security (availability, access, utilisation, and stability) in the context of both charitable AFNs and highlights the potential of community markets and foodbanks to address these dimensions. While there is ongoing debate about categorising food aid programmes as AFNs, both share the goal of reducing food insecurity and promoting sustainable and equitable food systems. Ultimately the paper argues that community markets offer a more sustainable and empowering approach to addressing food insecurity by addressing its underlying causes and promoting community resilience.
Ronald Ranta, Hilda Mulrooney, Nevena Nancheva, Dee Bhatka (Kingston University)
Deservingness, dignity and choice: Social Supermarkets and the end of the food bank?
The Covid-19 pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis dramatically increased the demand and need for food support in the UK; the increase has come on the backdrop of already high levels of food insecurity, a result of the austerity measures implemented by the then coalition government in 2010. Simultaneously, these crises also enabled substantial innovation in food support provision, including a move away from the traditional food bank model towards social supermarkets (SSM). These are characterised as not-for-profit social enterprises that sell mostly food, at low or symbolic prices to those living near or in poverty, providing more holistic support, minimising stigma, and food waste.
The aim of this paper is to provide an empirical account of SSMs in the UK, and in particular the experiences and perspectives of their members, focusing on three important features which, we argue, should guide future thinking in this domain, namely deservingness, choice, and dignity. The research was conducted at two SSM in Sussex, using site visitations, questionnaires (111), and interviews (25) based on a participatory and non-extractive approach geared towards engaging with local priorities and perspectives in the active co-creation of the research design. We argue that, while not a panacea for food insecurity, SSMs provide a more communal, sustainable, and dignified model of food support.
Catherine Teeling (University of Portsmouth)
Can Cities Feed Themselves? – Is there a possibility of an Edible City?
Cities and communities are increasingly at risk of food shortages. Many researchers, activists, theoreticians have been providing new visions’; new engagements with the relationship between food production cities (Tudge, 2007: Steel: Crockrall-King, 201)2; Yet we as practitioners educationalist seem powerless to inform Government’s, local authorities, planners, architects, designers, to addresses this, considerations only in theory but not practice. Yet there is exceptional evidence contrary to this.
Colin Tudge, argued for an ‘enlightened agriculture’ in his book, ‘Feeding People is easy’ (2007, pp39), he set out a proposition that cities could with the right engagement with farmers, government and local authorities it is possible that cities could feed and sustain themselves and create and congenial way of life for everyone involved in the food chain.
This paper provides evidence that bottom up processes can lead the way for sustainable cities of the future, it would require some top-down strategies to enable acceptance and support for these initiatives. Planning policies need to change, Jennifer Cockrall- King, in ‘Food and the City – Urban Agriculture and The New food revolution’ (2012-, pp78-80), suggests that developing new cities and regenerating cities to plan with food in mind could be a way forward, this paper suggests that this is a possibility, by identifying ways forward for this to be a possibility.
Charles Wood (University of Portsmouth)
Correlative and Multimodal Microscopy: Applications for Food Science
Correlative and multimodal microscopy (CMM) is a way of investigating the microscopic structure of organic and inorganic materials, by combining the strengths of different imaging, spectroscopic, and diffraction techniques to provide more information than a single technique alone. Through quantitative analysis, these combined datasets enable structural and chemical changes to be tracked across multiple length scales, from millimetres to nanometres, and across time, from seconds to months, linking the microscopic world with our everyday experience of the food we eat. Characteristics such as flavour, texture, consistency, and nutritional content (sometimes perceived as macroscopic qualities by consumers, along with size, colour, and shape) all have their origin on far smaller length scales than the human eye can naturally perceive. This short review finds utility by examining the different uses of CMM within the context of food, health, and sustainability. By ordering each technique by length scale, this review provides the reader with an ever increasing focus on the applications of CMM for food science.