Food Strike
How can the working class take back control of our food system?
Britain produces enough food to feed everyone, yet millions of people struggle to afford a healthy diet.
Food prices have risen sharply in recent years while many of the biggest supermarket chains have continued to report substantial profits. Farmers often say they face intense pressure from large retailers over the prices they receive, leaving many small producers squeezed between rising costs and powerful buyers. At the same time, ownership of large areas of land remains concentrated in relatively few hands, making it harder for new growers and smaller farms to expand.
The result is a food system that leaves too many people paying more for less. Cheap, heavily processed food is often easier to buy than fresh, nutritious alternatives. Food banks have become a permanent feature of life across the country. Communities that grow food, prepare meals and support each other are doing remarkable work, but they cannot solve a structural problem on their own.
The pressures ahead are unlikely to ease. Climate change is already affecting harvests around the world. International trade routes remain vulnerable to disruption. A serious interruption to shipping through routes such as the Strait of Hormuz would quickly expose how dependent the UK has become on long and fragile supply chains for food, fertiliser and fuel.
Food Strike exists to help build a different kind of movement.
Our immediate demands are food price caps, public ownership of the largest supermarket chains and the creation of a national food service that guarantees access to affordable, nutritious food.
Alongside those demands, we want to strengthen the practical foundations of food justice. Community kitchens, buying co-operatives, local growers, food workers and campaigners all have a part to play. The campaign starts by connecting those efforts. Over time, we aim to build enough organisation for coordinated consumer action, including democratic boycotts that can challenge the market power of the biggest retailers when needed.
The work begins with local organising.
Eat together, Organise locally
Food Strike is a proposal for a campaign for everyone who wants to see a world where food is accessible for all, beyond the constraints of capitalism and profit. We want a world where working-class people can take back control of our food system, and we believe that the best way to do that is to organise together.
We are calling for two weeks of community meals, skill-sharing, and mutual aid to discuss taking back control of our food system. We want to connect people who are already doing this work, and to build a movement that can challenge the power of the biggest retailers.
If you want to get involved and host a meal, skill-share, or mutual aid event, then sign up to get connected. We want you to start the conversation in your area and we will gather together and feed back your contributions to everyone who gets connected with the campaign. We will also be sharing resources and ideas to help you get started.
We want you to create a space to think about the kind of future we want. Let our imaginations and desires guide us in beginning to think about the world we want. Only then can we begin to think about how to get there.
Act together, Organise nationally
Loads of us are already organising for survival. Foodbanks, pay-what-you-can cafes, community kitchens, and mutual aid groups are all doing amazing work. But we need to go further. We need to organise nationally to challenge the power of the biggest retailers and to demand a fairer food system for everyone.
One of the first steps is to test the waters and find out who is out there already doing this work or wanting to get involved. We want us to connect as a first step towards acting together. We also want to go beyond the big cities and reach out into those places where working class organisation is less visible. We want to find out what is happening in towns and villages across the country, and to connect those efforts together.
To that end the Food Strike campaign is calling for two weeks of co-ordinated action & discussion. We want to build a feedback loop of ideas and experiences from across the country.
To do this we want to use shared spaces that already exist, so we can see and hear each other.
We want you to add your event to the Mobilise Everywhere map, so that others can see what's happening in their area, join in where they can and perhaps find a place where something needs to be organised.
We also suggest that organisers sign up and use the new Root & Branch website, a community forum for the left that has recently been set-up. Use this invite to join.
Who we are
Food Strike is a campaign for everyone who wants to see a world where food is accessible for all, beyond the constraints of capitalism and profit. We want a world where working-class people can take back control of our food system, and we believe that the best way to do that is to organise together. This callout is being made by the Territory & Refusal Commune of Plan C. We want to build a coalition of organisations and individuals who share our vision. Get in touch if you want to be part of it and want to be listed as supporting the call.