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The Urban Agenda for the EU Food Partnership has released a new policy statement calling on EU leaders to fully recognise cities as key actors in building fair, sustainable and resilient food systems.

Cities and local authorities are closest to citizens and see firsthand how food systems affect people’s health, local economies, social inclusion and the environment. Every day they influence how food is produced, procured and accessed – through school meals and public canteens, support to local producers, urban planning, land management and food waste policies. Yet, food is still not treated as a core priority in the EU Agenda for Cities, and local governments remain largely excluded from major EU food policy processes, including the upcoming EU Food Dialogue.

The statement therefore, calls on the EU to embed food systems as a priority in the EU Agenda for Cities and to promote local and national government working together on food. This means giving cities a formal role in EU food governance, including in the Food Dialogue and in the development of national and regional plans on food.

In this statement, the Partnership asks EU policy makers to:

• Include food as a priority in the EU Agenda for Cities, recognising its cross cutting role in climate action, public health, social inclusion and local economies.
• Give cities and regions a formal role in EU food governance, including the EU Food Dialogue and national and regional food planning.
• Strengthen public food procurement by revising EU procurement rules, clarifying sustainability criteria and providing training for local authorities.
• Guarantee universal access to healthy and sustainable school meals, and involve cities in shaping national strategies and EU initiatives in this area.
• Support the development of urban food strategies through dedicated funding, technical assistance and tools to help cities design and scale integrated food policies.
• Create EU food indicators for cities, along with shared data platforms and monitoring tools to support evidence based local decision making.
• Unlock the potential of public land to support young farmers, sustainable local production and water protection, and include cities in the design of the European Land Observatory.
• Support cities in reducing and recovering food waste through targeted funding, training and robust tools to measure the impact of local measures.

The Partnership’s message is clear: Europe will not meet its social, health, climate and resilience goals without bringing cities fully into its food policy. Giving cities a real seat at the table, starting with the EU Food Dialogue, is a practical necessity to turn EU ambitions into local action.