9. Short Debate: We are what we eat: Focusing on the nutrient density of food in order to improve public health

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:08 pm on 22 September 2021.

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Photo of Cefin Campbell Cefin Campbell Plaid Cymru 6:08, 22 September 2021

(Translated)

I'd like to thank Jenny Rathbone for giving me a minute of her time to make a contribution, and I agree entirely with her that we need to emphasise far more the benefits of eating good-quality foods and the positive impact of that not only physically but also mentally. But I just want to introduce one slightly different aspect to this, beyond the benefits in terms of nutrition, and that is the impact on public health through the negative environmental impacts that we're seeing at present because the food supply chain is so far removed from where the food is produced. If you think about it, food has to leave the farm gate, travel hundreds of miles to be processed, and then it has to be brought back hundreds of miles to be placed on shelves in our stores. And this adds, of course, to the climate crisis, with more and more carbon emissions poisoning our air because of this.