THE NATIONAL FOOD MARKETS
CONFERENCE™ 2007
‘From Producer to Consumer’
Post Conference Report
The second National Food Markets Conference, ‘From Producer to Consumer’ was held at the Barbican Centre in London on 20th November.
The day focussed on the growing importance of the UK’s small producers and highlighted the latest policy and strategy in place to support the traditional rural producers alongside larger commercial food suppliers.
Chaired by Sheila Dillon, Presenter of Radio 4’s Food Programme, keynote speakers included Lord Rooker, Minister of State for Sustainable Farming, Food and Animal Welfare, DEFRA, Robin Butler, Chief Executive, Lend Lease Europe, Tom Parker Bowles and Christine Tacon, Managing Director Co-operative Farms.
Representatives from Europe and the USA including Carol Binder, Executive Director at Pike Place Market, Seattle USA, and Oscar Ubide i Marcet, Boqueria Market, Barcelona, looked at key lessons learnt as well as the cultural, economic and geographical areas behind the success of foreign markets.
Key themes and conclusions from the day:
Bringing together a variety of perspectives from the supermarket and developer right through to the independent market operator, the conference highlighted that is a fascinating time to be involved in the markets world.
The potential role of markets in supporting independent food producers’; offering an alternative supply chain, in promoting the regional economy, offering an alternative to the growing dominance of the supermarkets all point to a revival in market fortunes
As such, a number of themes and conclusions were emphasised by speakers which are summarised below:
- Developing a clearer understanding and knowledge of Markets
- Promoting the importance of an alternative supply chain
- Putting markets on the UK retail and ensuring they are a key part of the retail hierarchy
- The idea of Markets as “Public Goods”
- The importance of the “Independent” producer sector
- The importance of the regional food economy the link to food markets
- Engaging markets and the environmental and healthy eating agendas
- The challenge of and too supermarkets
