The investor group calling on the UK government to promote a healthier and more sustainable food system now represents £3.8trn from £2.8trn earlier this year.
Led by Rathbone Greenbank Investments, the coalition – launched in July – now has 18 members with new signatories including Jupiter Asset Management and BMO Global Asset Management (EMEA).
Other signatories to the letter to UK officials include Aviva Investors, EOS at Federated Hermes, ShareAction, The Health Foundation and the Food Foundation.
They initially wrote to the UK government in July stating support for the National Food Strategy’s recommendation of mandatory reporting on nutrition and sustainability metrics for food sector companies.
Now representing an extra £1trn in assets under management or under advice, the group has sent another letter to UK prime minister Boris Johnson.
Published today, the letter coincides with a debate on the food strategy in Westminster.
The group has stated legislation on food company reporting should cover large retailers, restaurants, caterers, wholesalers, manufacturers and online food ordering platforms.
Bold response
Metrics should include sales of food and drink high in fat, sugar or salt, sales of protein by type, sales of fruit and vegetables and food waste, according to the coalition which encourages the government to: “Be bold and ambitious in its response to this major social and environmental challenge.”
According to the group there are externalities currently borne by the environment and society that ought to be internalised using tools such as enhanced regulation and fiscal interventions.
A statement from the coalition noted insufficient and inconsistent reporting in this area by food companies, with the Food Foundation finding only two out of 11 UK supermarkets report the percentage of protein sales from animal sources versus protein sales from plant-based sources.
Sophie Lawrence, senior ethical, sustainable and impact researcher at Rathbone Greenbank Investments said: “This investor group recognises the multitude of risks and opportunities facing the food industry linked to issues such as nutrition and food waste. At the same time, the food system is a major driver of climate change and biodiversity loss.
“The incidence of obesity – a key risk factor in cases of severe Covid-19 – is also rising across the world. These sustainability challenges present severe risks to the way in which the world produces, processes and consumes food. It’s clear that the food system in its current state is unsustainable and ambitious action is needed to realign it to work for people and planet.”
