STFC Food Network+ hosts the Innovations for Smart, Sustainable and Safe Food Systems Conference

The STFC Food Network+ (SFN+), based at the School for Business and Society, hosted its 5th Annual Conference on 3-4 July 2023 in York, UK. Themed "Innovations for Smart, Sustainable, and Safe Food Systems", the two-day international hybrid conference hosted over 130 participants, including leading interdisciplinary researchers working on agriculture, supply chains, consumer behaviour, physics, data science or technology, industry experts, and policymakers in global food systems.

Participants on the first day of the conference in York, UK

Established in 2017, the SFN+ has funded and supported over 100 interdisciplinary research projects that work at the intersections of STFC capabilities and the agrifood industry to address key challenges of food security and sustainability in the UK and beyond. This international hybrid conference served as an occasion to showcase the success of some of the SFN+-funded high-impact projects aimed at addressing pressing food challenges across the world as well as the latest knowledge exchange initiatives of the recently launched Expert Working Groups.

Professor Charlie Jeffery

Professor Charlie Jeffery, Vice-Chancellor and President, the University of York, and Professor Kiran Trehan, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Partnerships and Engagement, the University of York, joined the conference to welcome participants on Day 1 and Day 2 respectively.

Several notable keynote speakers presented their work on key food challenges and possible interventions, including Dr Arabinda Kumar Padhee, IAS, Principal Secretary, Agriculture and Farmers' Empowerment Government of Odisha, India; Selvarani Elahi, UK Deputy Government Chemist, National Laboratories & Science, LGC Group; Professor Pius Coxwell Achanga, Vice Chancellor, Mountains of the Moon University, Uganda; Professor Ian Noble, VP R&D – Research & Analytical, Mondelez International; Professor Megan Povey, Professor of Food Physics, the University of Leeds; and Dr Ramanjaneyulu GV, Executive Director, Centre for Sustainable Agriculture.

Professor Charlie Jeffery, Vice-Chancellor and President, the University of York, said at the opening of the conference:

“This year we are celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the University of York’s founding, which is an opportunity to reflect on and renew our founding principles. Let me mention two: we were established to carry out research that would contribute, I quote, ‘to the amelioration of human life and conditions’; and we had an internationalist commitment from the outset, believing that we would have more impact on human life and conditions more quickly if we learn with and from others, collaborating across different national and cultural contexts. We summarise this in the phrase: the University of York exists for public good.

The interdisciplinary work in SFN+ on food systems, physics, data science and technology, working with farming communities, industry experts, and policymakers, seems to me to be essential for global public good. It aligns so well with our University's mission to produce inspirational and life-changing research with global impact. And like the University the SFN+ network recognises that it is fundamental that we collaborate internationally, across disciplines, and across sectors. 

After not hosting in person events for a few years, I can feel the friendliness of the SFN+ community at this conference where everyone greets and hugs each other like friends and families.”

Professor Sonal Choudhary, Principal Investigator of the STFC Food Network+, said:

Professor Sonal Choudhary

“We at SFN+ are an exemplar of how a community can be resilient to disruptions such as Covid 19 and were one of the first networks to reorganise and strategise our collaborations from in-person sandpits to virtual sandpits which offered a unique platform of equality, diversity, inclusivity from around the world to discuss ideas and co-develop 100+ innovative projects. We invite all participants to be a part of this interdisciplinary international community beyond the lifetime of the SFN+.”

Photos from the conference can be viewed in an album on the School's Facebook page.