New SFP report and case studies published: Civil Food Resilience in Practice

Sustainable Food Places is today launching our practice-packed new report: Civil Food Resilience in practice: Capacity Building for resilience across the Sustainable Food Places network. This report distils insights and research from Sustainable Food Places member food partnerships, working as ‘first movers’ in Civil Food Resilience planning across the UK, and identifies a framework of action at the local, regional and national level.

Download the report

Supported by SFP Programme partner Sustain, the group sought to

1. Act on the recommendations within the National Preparedness Commission’s report ‘Just in Case: seven steps to narrow the UK’s civil food resilience gap’ (Lang et al, 2025)
2. Integrate learnings from the community food sector and local government responses to the Covid-19 pandemic
3. Use the recommendations and learnings to inform resilience and preparedness planning ahead of future crises, emergencies and systemic supply chain shocks.
4. This report outlines key learnings; existing good practice; challenges and infrastructure gaps; and recommendations for action for food partnerships and community organisations, local government, regional resilience bodies, and the UK government.

The recommendations in this report outline how to expand this work from a current patchwork of good practice into standard practice within every local authority, with roles for:

• The Sustainable Food Places programme
• Individual food partnerships
• Local authorities, mayoral strategic authorities and Local Resilience Forums
• National Government leadership

The research is clear: action is needed at every level to ensure we are more prepared for when crises come. Evidence from the Sustainable Food Places network shows that significant work is already taking place on the ground, serving to mitigate and reduce the risks of crises, national emergencies and related supply chain shocks.

This report recognises the determination and ingenuity of Sustainable Food Places who are paving the way and building capacity for food resilience across the UK.

Massive thanks to the 8 places that shared learning and helped to build our collective expertise:

• Greater Lincolnshire Food Partnership

• Birmingham Food Partnership

• Monmouthshire Food Partnership

• Dyfed Powys Food Resilience Project

• Food Plymouth

• Brighton & Hove Food Partnership

• Bristol Food Network

• Shropshire Good Food Partnership