The government's Food Industry Sustainability Strategy (FISS) came under fire at a meeting last month, as manufacturers and other stakeholders gathered to thrash out a way forward.
Attendees at the Westminster Food and Nutrition Forum said the FISS document was a step forward, but pointed to big omissions in it.
Jack Winkler, professor of nutrition policy at London Metropolitan University, said reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) would fundamentally effect food sourcing and its environmental impact by boosting imports from developing countries in the long term. That would completely change sustainability and the food miles debate, yet FISS "doesn't mention CAP once", he said.
Others said important groups weren't properly addressed by the document. "The majority of the industry comprises SMEs [small and medium-sized enterprises], but many don't have the expertise or the money to buy in the expertise they need to develop environmental strategies," said Richard Marshall, fellow at the Institute for Food Science and Technology. "They need clearly targeted support."
Food minister Lord Rooker responded: "There are an enormous number of SMEs who won't benefit from a one-size-fits-all approach. We're going to need co-operation, in some cases between competitors."
The exercise of power in the supply chain was a crucial factor affecting manufacturers' sustainability strategies, said Fiona Gooch, private sector policy advisor at fair-trade body Traidcraft: "We don't understand and are not addressing power dynamics in the supply chain. Powerful buyers can get anything out of a supplier."
Vicki Hird, senior campaigner for food and farming at Friends of The Earth said further analysis of waste and packaging issues was needed: "We haven't gone nearly far enough on waste. There's still a huge amount of over-ordering of food. And we haven't done nearly enough on reducing packaging to the minimum amount needed to protect products."
Bart Dalla Mura, chief executive of Bernard Matthews, called for a simple way of measuring progress on sustainability and 'green' issues. "It's important that we quickly get key performance indicators that are easy to measure."
'Champions Groups' were set up last year on Corporate Social Responsibility, Energy Use, Ethical Trading, Food Transportation, Waste and Water following publication of FISS in April 2006. Following their reporting in May, a 12-week consultation was launched.
This work will feed into a new government Food Chain Programme being launched in the autumn.