These recommendations draw upon a research report led by a group of legal academics [1] and entitled “The Right to Food for a just transition to sustainable food systems: the importance of the normative framework of the Right to Food and Nutrition in guiding and underpinning the European Union’s proposal for a European framework legislation for Sustainable Food Systems. This research report was commissioned and coordinated by FIAN.

1. A right based and systemic approach to the sfs
2. The right to food and nutrition as the overarching objective, outlining guiding principles and definitions, for a social and ecological just transition
3. Better governance enabling food systems transformation
4. Strong, transparent, and effective accountability & monitoring mechanisms
5. Policy interventions towards the implementation of the right to food and nutrition
6. Making implementation effective
7. Download this advocacy note
8. Contact person

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A RIGHT BASED AND SYSTEMIC APPROACH TO THE SFS

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The right to food for a just transition to sustainable food systems: the importance of the normative framework of the Right to Food and Nutrition in guiding and underpinning the European Union’s proposal for a European framework legislation for Sustainable Food Systems. Brussels, Belgium.

The Legislative Framework for Sustainable Food Systems (FSFS) aims to facilitate the EU’s transition toward socially and environmentally sustainable food systems. In pursuing these ambitious and commendable goals, European legislators will encounter a contradictory, fragmented and multi-layered set of policies and legislations, some of which operate against the core objectives of the FSFS and the main principles behind the EU Treaties.

Laws define and shape the production, distribution, consumption, and disposal of food in numerous ways. However there is no singular ‘EU Food Systems Law’ that can be readily referred to. On the contrary, legal provisions addressing food
systems encompass a wide range of diverse areas falling under multiple branches of law, such as land law, environmental law, commercial law, intellectual property law, public procurement law, specific rights for different economic operators, consumer
law, and more. These provisions transcend traditional divisions between national, European and international law. As such, it would be inaccurate to assume that what is known as “European food law,” particularly Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 [2], is insufficient to inform, guide and shape the law and policies of the European Union and its EU Member States towards the requirements of sustainable food systems.

Moreover, different branches of law pursue the general principles of their respective legal disciplines, often in a compartmentalised manner, with little or no harmonisation or even contradictory elements. For example, existing articles such as
Article 38 ss. of the TFEU (Treaty on the Functioning of the EU) on the CAP (Common Agricultural Policy), Article 207 of the TFEU on common commercial policy, and Article 191 of the TFEU on environmental protection establish uniform principles
that may not necessarily be compatible with each other, leading to conflicting decisions and interventions. In the medium-term, it is therefore necessary for the EU to adopt a comprehensive approach to laws and policies that contribute to the definition and functioning of the EU food system, as outlined in a recent report by the High-Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition of the Committee on World Food Security (HLPE-FNS).

As indicated in the EU Green Deal and the Farm to Fork strategy, coherence and alignment should be prioritised within the EU regulatory framework, between the EU and Member States’ systems, and with regard to the implications of EU and Member States’ law and policy frameworks on third countries. It is therefore crucial for the European Union to restore coherence within this extensive legal field, with the overarching objective of achieving a just transition towards sustainable food systems. Necessary changes in European law should integrate and inform all areas of law governing food systems; however, strong guiding principles are needed.

In our opinion, the normative framework provided by human rights offers an integrated approach to food systems that helps guide the understanding of the issues at hand and the legal and political tools that can be mobilised. This approach
aligns with the requirements of a human rights-based approach. Only a perspective grounded in human rights can guarantee the unity, legitimacy and strength that an ambitious and systemic legislation seeks to achieve.

1.1 The FSFS should be built upon human rights principles, such as participation, accountability, non-discrimination, transparency, human dignity, empowerment, the rule of law, and the recognition that all human rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated.

These principles should be applied in all political processes and strategies related to the transition of food systems, at all territorial levels.

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THE RIGHT TO FOOD AND NUTRITION AS THE OVERARCHING OBJECTIVE, OUTLINING GUIDING PRINCIPLES AND DEFINITIONS, FOR A SOCIAL AND ECOLOGICAL JUST TRANSITION

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Among all the rights that have been ratified by EU Member States and that influence the activities of the EU, we believe that the Right to Food and Nutrition provides the means to meet the expectations and objectives driving the development of the FSFS. It guides and specifies the necessary content for drafting all components that will shape this framework law. The Right to Food and Nutrition provides a comprehensive and coherent perspective on all policies related to food systems at various territorial levels, with a clearly defined objective. This objective does not require negotiation to achieve a common understanding, as it is already recognised and defined under international law.

We assert that there are clear legal and political arguments to affirm that the Right to Food and Nutrition framework is an indispensable tool to guide the European Union in the development of the provisions of the FSFS. In practical terms, we suggest that the Right to Food and Nutrition should be explicitly and emphatically positioned in the initial recitals of the legislation and among its principles. Its protection, respect and fulfilment should be three key objectives of the FSFS. Only
in this case, when the legislative process is informed by the Right to Food and Nutrition and aspires to it, it is possible to guarantee coherence and a systemic approach to the EU food systems transition.

2.1 We call on the EU to incorporate the content of the Right to Food and Nutrition into the drafting of the recitals, general objectives and principles of the FSFS, recognising its binding value to align all relevant laws with the requirements of the Right to Food and Nutrition.

Placing the Right to Food and Nutrition at the centre of the FSFS would not represent a legal innovation but would simply formalise the obligations of the European Union and the Member States contained in several human rights treaties and conventions, starting from the Universal Declaration of 1948. More specifically, as all EU Member States have ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), they have committed to respecting, protecting
and fulfilling the Right to Food and Nutrition. Therefore, a European framework legislation based on the Right to Food and Nutrition framework and human rights principles would reinforce and clarify the legal commitments and obligations
already undertaken by all EU Member States.

2.2 We recommend that EU legislative action is informed by the key contributions that the normative content of the Right to Food and Nutrition can make to the necessary evolution of the European legal framework towards a sustainable transition. We call on the EU to incorporate this content into the drafting of the general objectives, definitions and principles of FSFS, recognising its binding value in order to align all relevant areas of food law and policy to the content and vision of the Right to Food and Nutrition.

Additionally, the HLPE-FNS, the Human Rights Committee, the Food and Agriculture Organization, and the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, among others, have highlighted that the Right to Food and Nutrition is intrinsically connected with the principles of a just transition towards sustainable food systems. This is because the Right to Food and Nutrition requires public actors to prioritise the objectives of ensuring availability, accessibility, socio-environmental sustainability, and adequacy of food, while simultaneously addressing inequality, poverty and exclusion within all areas of food systems and beyond from a regulatory and legal perspective.

2.3 As the content of the Right to Food and Nutrition is inseparable from the objective of achieving a socially and ecologically just transition to sustainable food systems, this human right serves as the necessary foundation for fulfilling the general objective of the FSFS.

Furthermore, it is important to highlight that the Right to Food and Nutrition is indivisible and interdependent with all other human rights, including the right to a healthy environment, the right to health protection, the rights of peasants and
other people working in rural areas, the right to an adequate standard of living, etc. Its normative framework mobilises other rights to serve as both a foundation and an instrument for a just transition to sustainable food systems. In this context,
it is important to emphasise that the Farm to Fork strategy underscores the crucial connection between the wellbeing of people with the wellbeing of the planet while ensuring that no one is left behind.

Therefore, the Right to Food and Nutrition represents an ally in moving away from fragmented approaches that solely focus on environmental, nutritional, or technical considerations when addressing sustainability dimensions. Instead, it offers the basis to comply with the primary objective of the FSFS, aligning with the Farm to Fork strategy, the EU Green Deal and international law, and promoting a transition that encompasses socially, ecologically and economically just food systems. A truly systemic approach to food systems is one that combines the multiple dimensions of food sustainability, in line with the need to protect, respect and fulfil the rights of present and future generations, including the right to a healthy environment.

2.4 We urge the European Union to draw upon the legal content of the Right to Food and Nutrition to elaborate on the provisions of the FSFS. This will enable the fulfilment of expectations and objectives related to a sustainable transformation of our food systems, fostering social and ecological justice as the ultimate outcome. The definitions in the FSFS must reflect the ambition of a just transition towards sustainable food systems and address the various requirements associated with an approach based on the Right to Food and Nutrition. This includes addressing concerns related to social and environmental justice, mitigating inequalities and power imbalances within food systems, addressing food accessibility issues, and more. By doing so, the scope of this framework legislation will align with the transformative ambition of food systems.

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BETTER GOVERNANCE ENABLING FOOD SYSTEMS TRANSFORMATION

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The adoption of a rights-based approach and the centrality of the Right to Food and Nutrition are intricately linked to the development and consolidation of democratic governance forums. We invite EU legislators to draw inspiration from existing examples such as food policy councils and similar initiatives that are emerging at various territorial levels across Europe . These initiatives have operationalised mechanisms and procedures that recognise the public and collective nature of food systems. At the European level, an EU Food Policy Council could be established to ensure the participation of all actors in food systems, foster cooperation, and embrace the diverse values present in democratic societies across EU Member States. This council should reflect the interdependencies of food systems operating at different scales and engage in dialogue with similar spaces established across the EU and its levels of governance.

3.1 We urge the EU to integrate principles based on human rights to establish appropriate forms of democratic and participatory governance of food systems. We encourage the development and consolidation of democratic governance forums, taking inspiration from existing examples such as food policy councils and similar initiatives that are emerging at various territorial levels across Europe and beyond. These forums should adopt a meaningful participatory approach. At the European level, an EU Food Policy Council could be established to embrace the diverse values present in democratic societies across EU Member States. The Council should reflect the interdependencies of food systems operating at different scales and across DGs.

Secondly, governance provisions should address power imbalances and create conditions for the meaningful participation of individuals whose human rights are at risk, especially those facing economic marginalisation or any form of cultural, gender, racial or other types of discrimination. In this sense, the EU legislative process should consider the criticisms raised against recent attempts to establish new ‘multi-stakeholder’ spaces and mechanisms in the global food governance arena. Rather than being ‘blind’ to power dynamics, the governance mechanisms of the FSFS should acknowledge existing inequalities and facilitate the development of autonomous, bottom-up and transparent processes that effectively translate the lived experiences of the most vulnerable food actors (producers, workers, eaters, etc.) into policymaking. By integrating human rights principles and adopting these governance provisions, the EU can establish a framework that ensures meaningful participation, addresses power imbalances, and fosters inclusive and democratic decision-making within food systems.

In this regard, the Commission could draw inspiration from the role of the Civil Society and Indigenous Peoples Mechanism of the UN Committee on World Food Security (CSIPM), while also recognising the criticisms and limitations associated with the institutionalisation of processes and the burden it may represent for under-funded organisations. The Committee on World Food Security, on one hand, aims to adopt public policies through consensus while clearly placing the responsibility for implementation in the hands of governments. On the other hand, it prioritises the voices of organisations representing the most marginalised groups in debates.

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STRONG, TRANSPARENT, AND EFFECTIVE ACCOUNTABILITY & MONITORING MECHANISMS

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Accountability and monitoring instruments, as understood within the international human rights framework, are based on a series of obligations for the EU and member States. As signatories of international treaties, EU Member States assume
obligations and duties under international law to respect, protect and fulfil human rights. These are not political or strategic choices but these obligations should be translated into action.

• In accordance with the obligation to Respect, EU Member States must refrain from taking any measures that would hinder the achievement of sustainable food systems. Measures to implement the FSFS must, therefore, ensure that there is no regression in the realisation of the Right to Food and Nutrition.
• In accordance with the obligation to Protect, EU Member States must ensure that companies or individuals, including dominant or aggressive third parties or those with powerful economic interests, do not engage in actions that undermine the objectives of a just transition to sustainable food systems.
• _ EU Member States must regulate the practices of intermediary players, including private companies, prevent conflicts of interest, and take responsibility for any human rights and environmental violations. In this regard, the implementation measures of the FSFS are closely linked to the companies’ duty of care.
• In accordance with the obligation to Fulfil, EU Member States must adopt legal and policy measures to facilitate the realisation of the Right to Food and Nutrition and accelerate the necessary just transition to sustainable food systems. EU Member States are required to identify and allocate the maximum possible resources to achieve this objective.

4.1 The provisions related to governance in the FSFS should fulfil the requirements of a rightsbased approach in terms of both substance and form, including the establishment of monitoring and evaluation processes, the adoption of taxonomies, accessibility to information, and recognition of the power imbalance across food chains.

In line with the above recommendations, we believe that the European Union should pay particular attention to formulating the expected impacts and changes to ensure they align with the requirements of Right to Food and Nutrition and human rights principles. Moving beyond environmental-based indicators, the European Union can make progress towards mandatory sustainability objectives by incorporating National Sustainable Food Systems Strategic Plans developed by EU Member States. These plans should recognise food as a matter of public interest and require public intervention to address the structural causes of inequalities in access to sustainable food.

4.2 We propose that the FSFS incorporates indicators that encompass both the content of the Right to Food and Nutrition (addressing availability, accessibility, sustainability and adequacy) and the principles of a rights-based approach to guide the monitoring of sustainable food systems strategies.

The Right to Food and Nutrition framework clearly establishes the accountability mechanisms of public and private actors in all sectors of the food system, based on the obligations of EU Member States derived from international human rights treaties . The monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for measuring progress in meeting the challenges of sustainable food systems, within the framework of the FSFS, should, therefore, encompass the three sets of obligations detailed above for EU Member States and integrate the principles of human rights.

4.3 We recommend that the accountability mechanisms, monitoring, and control mechanisms align with the obligations of EU Member States regarding the Right to Food and Nutrition.

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POLICY INTERVENTIONS TOWARDS THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RIGHT TO FOOD AND NUTRITION

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Regarding the different horizontal elements (food environments) and policy interventions outlined in the FSFS (i.e., minimum sustainability criteria, sustainability labelling and public procurement), we believe that the European Union should
carefully define the content and scope of these options in line with the requirements of the Right to Food and Nutrition and the principles of a rights-based approach. Without such attention, these measures may contribute to building sustainable
food systems but would not be sufficient to realise the ambitious goal of a social and ecological just transition through the implementation of the FSFS. We believe that a right to food-based engagement with food environments and public procurement is therefore key if there is a real aspiration of a transformative and systemic FSFS.

Food environments

Mobilising the concept of food environments, rather than individual information, is fundamental to changing the relationship between public authorities and the construction of sustainable food systems. However, it is only by combining
the notion of food environments with that of the Right to Food and Nutrition that transformative change can be achieved . Two arguments are noteworthy.

Firstly, a right to a food-based notion of food environments is crucial for addressing the issue of inequalities in food access, which is a central concern of this right. Focusing solely on labelling and information provided to individual consumers is an inadequate approach to understanding how choices are formed and exercised and may even exacerbate social inequalities and exclusion for vulnerable households. Information and awareness-raising measures to encourage sustainable food choices must be complemented by public policy actions that create and regulate food environments including physical and economic access to food (proximity and affordability), promotion, advertising and information activities relating to food products, as well as the quality and safety of food . These measures should systematically meet the requirements of social and environmental sustainability and contribute to the protection, respect and fulfilment of the Right to Food and Nutrition.

Secondly, the Right to Food and Nutrition helps define the obligations of the European Union and the EU Member States regarding their responsibility for transitioning to sustainable food systems. In particular, a rights-based approach underscores that public authorities must take necessary actions to ensure that food environments are compatible with the protection, respect and fulfilment of rights. These actions also relate to the need to introduce compulsory and binding commitments , rather than voluntary commitments, to make the right to food a reality.

Public procurement

To fulfil human rights obligations and accelerate the transition towards socially and environmentally sustainable food systems, there should be a shift towards mandatory Sustainability Public Procurement (SPP) for food and catering procurement. This shift aligns with the recommendations of the JRC (Joint Research Centre) in its concepts for a sustainable EU food system and with the content of the Right to Food and Nutrition as a binding obligation of EU Member States and public authorities.

Adequate mandatory substantive requirements provide clarity and precision, ensuring certainty for both buyers and sellers. Moreover, they are less prone to circumvention compared to procedural criteria and targets, and they can be effectively enforced through legal means , acting as a strong deterrent against non-compliance. However, the introduction of minimum requirements should not prevent contracting authorities from going beyond what is mandated in order to accelerate the transition. An excellent example of this approach is Italy’s implementation of minimum mandatory SPP criteria for food and catering.

At the same time, stronger exclusion criteria could be employed to enforce environmental law, human rights, workers’ rights, and other social-environmental rights by food providers. This is in line with the approach recently adopted by Article
25 of the EU Deforestation Regulation, which stipulates penalties for operators and traders who violate the Regulation, including, under lit. (d) “temporary exclusion for a maximum period of 12 months from public procurement processes and from access to public funding, including tendering procedures, grants and concessions”. A similar provision could be enacted in relation to breaches of clear provisions in the forthcoming FSFS proposal, considering amendments to the 2014 procurement and concessions directives. Establishing strong connections with the upcoming Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, and going beyond the sole obligation to report it would be essential to ensure that enterprises that receive public funding are subject to rigorous scrutiny in terms of their social and environmental performance, while providing adequate support and financing to smaller actors and avoiding further market consolidation.

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MAKING IMPLEMENTATION EFFECTIVE

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To ensure the effective and meaningful implementation of the FSFS, we recommend that the European Union includes two types of implementing provisions:

1 - The framework law should specify the following:

• A specific timeframe within which the necessary implementing legislation must be adopted.
• Any future legal texts that impact the realisation of the Right to Food and Nutrition must be compatible with this right and the framework law.
• Other relevant legislation should be interpreted in a manner compatible with the Right to Food and Nutrition, such as in relation to the EU Green Taxonomy Regulation.

2 - Given that implementing the framework law may require amending various sectoral laws and issu ing supplementary texts in those areas, the following measures should be considered:

• The adoption of the Right to Food and Nutrition as a guiding principle for the definition of the substantive and procedural content of the future EU Food Systems Law.
• A list of priority sectoral areas where the legal texts should be re-examined and, if necessary, amended to ensure compatibility with the Right to Food and Nutrition and its realisation.
• In line with the priority of human rights, the obligation to amend or repeal any legislative provision that appears incompatible with the Right to Food and Nutrition and the FSFS.

By placing the normative framework of the Right to Food and Nutrition at the core of the FSFS drafting process, it will be possible to establish new foundations for European food systems law and bring about the systemic and structural changes necessary for their sustainability. Building on this framework legislation for Sustainable Food Systems, the requirements of an approach based on the Right to Food and Nutrition can then be applied to all laws and policies of the European Union and its EU Member States, including those with extraterritorial implications.

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ALMUDENA GARCIA SASTRE
FIAN EU Policy and Advocacy officer
almudena@fian-europe.org