From 11 to 13 March 2024 the government of Flanders, which has food policies under its competencies, will host a three-day Open Food Conference under the auspices of the Belgian EU Council presidency. The Conference focuses on the transition towards sustainable food systems with the ambition to create synergies between policy, science and practice.

As part of the Conference, ICLEI will contribute to the session “Food inequality: A whole school food approach”, which emphasises school meals as an effective means of combating child poverty and builds on findings from the EU-funded SchoolFood4Change project, which ICLEI is leading.

• Food inequality: A whole school food approach | Spoor 95, Monday, 11 March 2024, 11:30-13:00 CET

Furthermore, ICLEI has organised a session on the role of public procurement in European food systems with a specific focus on the potential of establishing minimum mandatory standards for sustainable public procurement, as proposed in the Sustainable Food Procurement Manifesto, showcasing successful practices from various cities and regions across Europe.

• Raising the bar: public procurement’s role in cultivating healthy, just, and sustainable European food systems | Perszaal, Tuesday, 12 March 2024, 13:45-15:15 CET

About the Conference:

The Open Food Conference is intended to provide the framework for an open dialogue about the future of local, regional and global food systems. 27 thematic sessions will provide participants with the opportunity to deal with questions around the sustainability of food systems. With a view to the next European legislature and the objectives outlined in the Farm to Fork strategy, Conference organisers want to shed light on systemic solutions, challenges and opportunities. Policy makers and stakeholders from different policy levels and perspectives, as well as experts in this field will have the opportunity to participate in panel discussions, plenary sessions or interactive workshops, and site-visits on various themes linked to the Farm to Fork strategy and Flanders’ Food Strategy. The Conference is co-organised by three different departments of the Flemish government: the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Flanders Chancellery and Foreign Office  and the Department of Economics, Research and Innovation.

Questions? Contact Agrifish2024@lv.vlaanderen.be