Feeding Australia: Shaping Our National Food Strategy (Webinar Recap)

The Australian food system is taking us in the wrong direction.

A relentless and narrow focus on productivity – combined with persistent cost of living pressures – is increasing food insecurity, dietary-related ill-health and deterioration in our soils and river catchments. These and other negative impacts are felt by all Australians.

In this webinar, Sustain collaborated with leading experts from Deakin University and independent health professional Dr Rosemary Stanton OAM, to explore how Feeding Australia (the Federal government’s discussion paper on developing a National Food Security Strategy) can tackle these major challenges to human and ecosystem health.

The webinar was attended by 170 people from across the country and generated a high degree of consensus regarding the key priorities and principles that should underpin Feeding Australia – namely human health and wellbeing and ecosystem integrity.

Key Themes & Messages

• Feeding Australia is a pivotal opportunity to create a fair, sustainable, and resilient national food system.
• Learn from past policy failures: ensure an inclusive, participatory process that prioritises equity, health, and the environment.
• Ground the strategy in the human right to food and embed dignified, cash-first approaches over charity-based relief.
• Adopt a systems approach linking climate resilience, nutrition, economic stability, and social justice.
• Address structural drivers: supermarket market power, income support, housing, transport, and corporate concentration.
• Invest in regenerative agriculture, urban farming, food hubs, and community-controlled food enterprises to scale proven local solutions.
• Establish robust governance: empower the National Food Council, set measurable targets, and ensure cross-sector coordination.            

Key Action Points for Submissions

• Call for legislated recognition of the human right to food within Feeding Australia.
• Support a shift from narrow agricultural productivity metrics to total system productivity considering social, environmental, and economic outcomes.
• Include equity as a foundational principle
• Advocate for cash-first policies (e.g., raising JobSeeker rates) and structural reforms (affordable housing) to tackle root causes of food insecurity.
• Urge federal funding for regenerative farming, food hubs, co-ops, and social enterprises to diversify supply chains and build resilience.
• Recommend fiscal measures treating ultra-processed foods as harmful products to fund health and food security initiatives.
• Call for strong, enforceable standards for healthy food in schools and workplaces
• Restrict unhealthy food advertising
• Coordinated federal–state action to embed nutrition and public health in Feeding Australia.
• Promote First Nations food sovereignty, leadership, and culturally safe approaches in all programs.
• Request clear governance, measurable targets, and independent oversight by the National Food Council.

Speaker Summaries

Nick Rose (Sustain – Opening Remarks)

Recalled past failures of national food policy (2013 National Food Plan, 2015 Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper) and urged that Feeding Australia must avoid repeating mistakes by being inclusive and participatory. Called for legislating the human right to food, citing Australia’s 1976 commitment under international law. Advocated for a cash-first approach inspired by Scotland’s Good Food Nation Act to end reliance on food banks. Stressed that human health and ecosystem integrity must underpin the strategy, not narrow productivity goals. Recommended shifting to total system productivity, tackling supermarket market power, raising JobSeeker rates, addressing housing, and building diversified, localised supply chains. Highlighted the need for fiscal measures on ultra-processed foods, support for regenerative agriculture, and centralising First Nations food sovereignty.

Dr Rachael Walshe (Sustain)

Presented Sustain’s systematic analysis of 187 submissions to the 2023 parliamentary inquiry into food security. Highlighted broad stakeholder consensus for coordinated, whole-of-government food governance and a formal National Food Plan. Emphasised the need to incorporate the human right to food, secure income supports and move beyond charity-driven food relief—issues underrepresented in the Committee’s final report. Urged the federal government to respond substantively to all 35 recommendations and integrate them into Feeding Australia.

Dr Christina Zorbas (Deakin)

Presented the 11 recommendations developed by the Deakin University research team that forms the basis of the Deakin submission to the Feeding Australia Discussion Paper. Emphasised that there needs to be more clarity about the purpose and scope of the Strategy. Equity and the human right to food need to be included as basic principles. Nutrition security must be centred within the key priority areas. Investments in productivity need to be broad-based and include First Nations food economies. The scope should be redefined in terms of sustainability. Governance and leadership need to be a whole of food system consideration, together with monitoring and accountability. 

Dr Erica Reeve (Deakin)

Criticised traditional grants and subsidies for favouring a narrow range of commodities and large producers, excluding smallholders, social enterprises, and community farms. Called for Feeding Australia to distribute benefits equitably across the food system, support diverse nutrition-critical commodities, and include environmental safeguards. Highlighted the need to address power concentration in agriculture and promote double-duty benefits that achieve health, equity, environmental, and economic goals simultaneously.

Dr Rebecca Lindberg (Deakin)

Encouraged collective advocacy to maintain pressure for a National Food Plan after decades of calls. Framed food security as a structural, human rights issue grounded in UN definitions and called for tackling root causes beyond DAFF’s remit, with shared governance across agencies. Highlighted decades of successful local food projects—food hubs, co-ops, social enterprises— and called for major investment to scale these models to provide dignified alternatives to food charity.

Dr Rosemary Stanton (Independent Nutritionist)

Provided historical context on health and nutrition policy in Australia over many decades and warned against fragmented, short-term approaches. Recalled that the campaigns against smoking in the 1970s and 1980s succeeded when many groups of people worked together, including doctors and medical professionals.  There will be opposition from the food industry. Antagonisms can be expected but they can be confronted with evidence and with many groups working together. 

Join the movement

If you are interested in taking your food system advocacy work further, please consider joining the Vote for Food community space on The Australian Food Network – the digital gathering place for food system change-makers like you.