Building on the previous Ambition 2025 programme, the strategy shares five targeted ambitions for the next five years highlighting the industry’s commitment to reducing its impact on the planet.
As one of the UK’s biggest industries, employing more than half a million people and contributing over £38 billion to the nation’s economy, food and drink manufacturers are playing a ‘pivotal role’ in helping the nation meet its environmental commitments as well as enhancing food security.
The five targeted ambitions include:
- Net zero: Food and drink manufacturers will support the agrifood supply chain’s target to reduce its emissions by 50%, in line with the industry’s pledge to achieve net zero by 2040.
- Nature restoration: By investing in nature restoration projects including regenerative agriculture, manufacturers will contribute to the UK’s Nature Positive ambition to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030.
- Sustainable commodities: By halting commodity-driven deforestation and conversion by 2030, the sector will prevent further biodiversity loss due to commodity production.
- Food waste: Manufacturers will build on the substantial progress they have already made by halving food waste from the manufacturing process by 2030.
- Packaging: By working in partnership with Government, the sector will contribute to the creation of a world-class packaging recycling system in the UK.
Karen Betts, chief executive of the FDF, said: "Climate change is demanding rapid change on the part of food systems – whether this is adapting to unpredictable weather patterns or changing what we’re doing and how we’re doing it to produce food and drink.
“The businesses in our sector are active – directly and through their supply chains – in driving down emissions, working to restore nature, reducing food waste, and ensuring all packaging is reduced, reused or recycled. Ambition 2030 is critical in supporting them to do that, with practical guidance, knowledge sharing and planning, to ensure everyone in our sector successfully navigates the next set of complex challenges we need to tackle in the coming five years.
"FDF is now also increasingly looking beyond 2030, ensuring we’re working with other key partners across the food sector and in government to ensure we are mapping the sector’s next, critical steps to 2050, ensuring our food and drink supplies are sustainable and secure, while actively contributing to global food security, in a changing world."