England’s Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) 2023 includes a cross-cutting theme of ‘green choices’, which is about ensuring a coherent approach across the EIP and other Government strategies and enabling all stakeholders to play a part in improving the environment. To inform part of our assessment of Government’s progress with the EIP in 2023-24, we commissioned CECAN Ltd with TABLE from the University of Oxford to undertake a review and analysis of how the green choices theme was represented in the Government Food Strategy 2022.
The green choices theme is operationalised in six principles based on behavioural insights research. The same six principles are also fundamental to delivery of Government’s Net Zero Strategy. Each of the six principles was reflected to some extent in the Government Food Strategy and the actions it contains. However, they were only present at a high-level and their overall expression is weak. Reviewing wider literature on what governments can do to create a more sustainable food system, 17 headline areas were identified that could strengthen the way green choices principles are used in the context of the UK food system.
The views provided in this report are those of CECAN Ltd and TABLE, University of Oxford and do not represent the opinion or position of the OEP. Some of the analysis in this report was used to inform the OEP’s report Progress in improving the natural environment in England 2023/2024.