Dr John Ingram, Senior Researcher at the Environmental Change Institute (ECI), was among academic, industry and government experts who contributed to a Government Office for Science roundtable exploring how the UK could maintain food supplies in the face of severe ecosystem degradation or collapse.
The resulting report, Technologies for strengthening UK food resilience in a changing environment, was published on 19 August. The roundtable was chaired by Professor Dame Angela McLean, Government Chief Scientific Adviser, and brought together experts from across the UK to consider the technologies and approaches that could help strengthen the resilience of the food system.
The report highlights the vulnerability of the UK food system to shocks and the need for long-term transformation. It identifies opportunities to improve efficiency and reduce waste, strengthen domestic food production, develop more resilient crops and make better use of nutrients and resources.
It also considers the potential role of emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, robotics, gene editing, vertical horticulture and cell-cultivated products, while emphasising that many technologies require significant energy and other resources to operate at scale.
The report also highlights the importance of changes beyond technology, including reducing food waste, improving food storage and distribution, supporting innovation in sustainable food production and considering changes in consumer demand and behaviour.
Dr Ingram's research focuses on food-system resilience and sustainability, including work on transforming nutrient flows and developing more sustainable food systems.
The report is available on the Government Office for Science website.