Kai For All: Exploring a Food System Strategy for Our Region
In this webinar, you will hear from two leading food-system thinkers, Tessa Acker and Pete Russell, as they unpack the challenges and opportunites of our current food system. You’ll hear perspectives both at a national / global level, as well as at a local and regional level, as we discuss our region’s first Food System Plan.
Multiple interconnected factors are driving the need to develop a regional food system plan:
- our region’s population is estimated to grow by 200,000 people in the next 30 years. How do we plan to sustainably produce enough food to support this?
- Currently, 1 in 5 children in Aotearoa live in households that experience food insecurity, yet Aotearoa produces enough food for 40 million people.
- Quality food production relies on healthy soil and water – these are both vulnerable to climate change, and to some of our current food production and distribution practices.
This webinar shares vital research and examples of how we can grow food in a way that supports a healthy environment, nourishes our communities, celebrates our diverse cultures, and strengthens our local economy.
About the Speakers
Tessa Ackerson is a Senior Public Health Advisor at Te Whatu Ora National Public Health Service, and the project lead of the WRLC Regional Food System Plan (RFSP). The RFSP envisions a regional food system that is sustainable, equitable, and locally-led, that centres the wellbeing of our environment and our people. Tessa’s work is rooted in health and food as a human right, and she is passionate about the role that food plays in nourishing us, connecting us to each other and our earth, and bringing joy to our lives.
Pete Russell is the founder of Ooooby, an online platform for small farms and food hubs to sell direct to local customers. Ooooby’s mission is to put ‘small-scale’ back at the heart of our food systems. More than 100 farms and food hubs are now using Ooooby every week to deliver local food to over 12,000 local households.