Right to Food: Implementation in the UK

The Global Food and Environment Institute (GFEI) invites you to join our June 2023 webinar: ‘Right to Food: Implementation in the UK’.

During this talk, Clare James, School of Law, University of Leeds, will highlight the findings of her research in this area.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit, the UK’s failure to realise the right to food is becoming increasingly clear. The use of food banks is rising, food costs are increasing rapidly affecting people’s ability to consume an adequately nutritious diet, and there are frequent disruptions of supply chains resulting in shortages of certain goods.

In addition, the development of agricultural policy across the four countries in the UK is disjointed. Despite ratifying the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights, the UK has not incorporated the rights contained in this treaty, including the right to food, into domestic law.

This presentation will discuss the UK’s obligations in relation to the right to food, proposing a novel normative framework for this right. It will then discuss how the UK is failing to meet these obligations, before suggesting that the UK requires framework legislation to ensure the UK realises the right to food for all.

The event will start with welcome and introductions from the Chair, followed by a 20-minute webinar presented by Clare James, and 10 minutes for Q&A.

The seminar will be chaired by Professor Michael Cardwell, Professor of Agricultural Law, University of Leeds.

Please email the GFEI team at globalfood@leeds.ac.uk with any questions.