Delivering the Government’s 50% Local and Sustainable Food Commitment: Recommendations from the DFPNAB

Introduction

The Dynamic Food Procurement National Advisory Board (DFPNAB) exists to promote and further the uptake of dynamic food procurement in the UK as a route to achieving shorter, fairer, more resilient supply chains that deliver environmental, economic and health benefits to many.

The current Government has pledged a commitment to 50% of public sector food and drink being local and/or sustainable. This would equate to approximately £2.5bn being spent on sustainable or local food in the UK. This is a welcome and positive pledge, and whilst there has been some positive interventions made, such as the new procurement regulations and the new Buying Better Food framework, our board member’s experience points to there being much to do in a short space of time if the pledge is to be achieved.

The members of the DFPNAB are actively engaging with DEFRA and other Government departments to advocate solutions for how this target can be achieved. These include:

1. Develop, expand, publish and mandate revised Government Buying Standards for Food & Drink (GBSF) 

• Initiate the revision process immediately

• Align the revised GBSF with Crown Commercial Service (CCS) Buying Better Food (BBF) framework requirements as the most detailed and recent piece of multi-government department aligned input on how to reform public sector procurement.

• Align the School Food Standards with the GBSF and include guidance on sourcing that is consistent with the Buying Better Food Framework.

• Extend scope of GBSF to include the education sector, the largest share of public sector food procurement.

• Mandate the GBSF for every sector where feasible. According to civil servants in central government departments, mandation is an imperative and helpful prerequisite for their departments and institutions to lead the scale of change needed.

• Consult and publish by the end of 2025.

• Monitor compliance and report 6-monthly from 2026 to the end of parliament.

2. Assure the taxpayer’s £5Bn public sector catering investment and focus funding at local/sustainable produce

• Establish transparency and assurance via supply chain technology similar to that used by the Buying Better Food framework.

• Promote local known origin and sustainable produce via pump-prime funding mechanics to establish new short supply chains where they didn’t previously exist. Provide support for farmers and growers to incorporate the public sector into their routes to market.

• Index link and ringfence price per meal funding across all sectors.

3. Baseline, measure and report effectively:

• Leverage farm level data in addition to certification programs or proxy data

• Define sustainable holistically - not just carbon. This means taking into account biodiversity, soil and water health, animal and human welfare and financial, economic and community impacts of production.

• Recognise process efforts - not just outcomes. Farms making the transition to more environmentally, socially and economically sustainable approaches need support.

• Establish rigorous data reporting in procurement contracts.

The Dynamic Food Procurement National Advisory Board is a coalition of food policymakers, procurement practitioners, and food producers united to promote sustainable and inclusive food procurement inspired by the Bath and North East Somerset Dynamic Food Procurement pilot in 2018. Members include representatives from organisations such as The Soil Association, Sustain, the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), and the Pasture-Fed Livestock Association. It also features experts like procurement consultants, supply chain managers, and government leads from DEFRA. Together, the Board develops guidance and tools to transform food systems through dynamic procurement strategies.