Meeting the urgency for an agreed food metric

OmniAction is a new global organisation dedicated to measuring the social, health and sustainability impacts of the food system. It will create a science-based, verified and independent framework which will be made available as a public good to all actors across the food system. 

The official launch event will be held via a Zoom video conference at 4pm GMT on January 27th 2022. Those wishing to attend should sign up via this Eventbrite link.  

Co-founder Tim Lang, Emeritus Professor at City University, London, says, “We need to take a multi-criteria approach to food. Poor nutrition should not be a trade-off for causing less damage to the environment; just as poor labour rights, land tenure, or food safety should not have to be traded off – we need to examine all these impacts.  

“We need a full-system framework” – Prof Tim Lang

“I first proposed a multi-criteria approach to food standards more than a decade ago, and now the technology makes it possible.  

“It’s time to create a global, harmonised framework for food metrics which can act as a resource for the entire food system.” 

“Business and finance are looking for agreed global metrics”

Co-founder Lise Colyer added, “There is a real urgency to addressing the impacts of the food system. One third of all greenhouse gas emissions are from agrifood; experts describe the supply chain as plagued by child and forced labour; and poor and inadequate food is the biggest killer in the world. 

“Business and finance are looking for agreed global metrics they can work to, to meet social and sustainability goals.

“And consumers want to know what their hard-earned money is going toward when they do their food shop.

“The time is now for unifying the food system behind a workable set of standards.”

Professor Lang and Lise Colyer are joined on the launch team by Anya Doherty, CEO of Foodsteps, Emeline Fellus, Director of Food Reform for Sustainability & Health at the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, and food systems consultant Gavin Wren. OmniAction will capture ongoing data improvements, iterating toward a full framework addressing environmental impact, labour rights, land sovereignty, food safety and nutrition.  

This will foster a consumer environment which progresses health and sustainability. And this in turn will foster changes in the industry and policy environments.

The launch team invites those keen to participate to register their interest and to join the official launch event.  For more information contact: Lise Colyer, lise@omniaction.org, +44 (0)7896 503 804.