Sustain: the Australian Food Network

Sustain’s vision is a thriving food system that nourishes all people in Australia while caring for the life systems on which we depend. Our mission is to make this a reality by designing and building food systems that foster ecological health and human wellbeing.

Currently the Australian food system is generating multiple harms. These include:
– the growing burden of chronic, dietary-related disease
– greenhouse emissions and environmental harms caused by industrial agriculture and excessive food waste
– food insecurity impacting a third of Australian households

Put simply, the food system is failing us and major change is needed. As Australia’s leading food systems field-building intermediary, championing a bold agenda for food system transformation, we are best-placed to lead this work.

Our current priorities are:
– growing the Australian Food Network, the digital home for Australia’s food system change-makers
– leading a national campaign to ensure that the Federal government prioritises human and ecological wellbeing in the National Food Security Strategy
– working with VicHealth and the 55 organisations that form part of Local Partnerships for Food First

Evidence of our impact includes:
– shaping more than 20 local food strategies, networks and place-based research
– highly influential in two Victorian parliamentary inquiries into food security (2024)
– providing transformative hands-on learning experiences for 40 young people from diverse backgrounds through our Food Justice internships

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