Inquiry calls for NSW food security plan

People are going hungry in NSW while perfectly good food is thrown away, and a state parliamentary inquiry has urged the government to tackle the problem.

Committee chair Alex Greenwich says it makes no sense for people to go without food in NSW.

Like other jurisdictions, NSW does not have a food security strategy or a central point of responsibility for it, the independent MP told AAP on Tuesday.

"We have the opportunity to lead here and really carve the path for food security and supply in Australia by having a co-ordinated approach," he said.

The report recommends government develop strategies to address food insecurity, promote access to nutritious food, and improve production.

A Food System and Security Council made up of government departments, non-government organisations, food producers, health experts and community stakeholders is proposed.

There are also environmental concerns, with the report noting there are 17.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions annually from wasted food being sent to rot in landfill.

"If we're serious about reducing emissions we've also really got to take tackling food waste seriously," Mr Greenwich said.

NSW Farmers policy director Kathy Rankin said unrealistic and superficial aesthetic standards from supermarkets, which the committee recommends limiting, have been a source of frustration.

"There is no nutritional problem with that food, and this will certainly be a way to help get more nutritious food onto dinner plates, which is what farming is ultimately all about," Ms Rankin said.

The bare supermarket shelves that shocked shoppers during the pandemic have drawn greater attention to food security.

Organisations like OzHarvest and Foodbank helped distribute food during the pandemic, receiving government funding.

However, their work preventing waste and hunger through "food rescue" does not enjoy the same support.

Those organisations should have ongoing funding for more drivers and vans, the inquiry says.

"But it's also a matter of education for the supermarkets to make sure they don't throw out perfectly good food, but they work with partners to be able to reallocate it to areas of need," Mr Greenwich said.

OzHarvest chief executive Ronni Kahn says it's a crime to waste food while people struggle to afford groceries.

"If we rescued all the annual total of surplus food in NSW that ends up in landfill, it would be enough to feed everyone in the state for six months," she said.

Schools should have programs on food waste, giving children an understanding of production, including through "experiential learning programs", potentially in their own school gardens, the report recommended.

Ms Kahn said OzHarvest's food education and sustainability training is being taught in hundreds of primary schools around Australia after launching in NSW in 2019.

The committee also recommended planning and environmental frameworks change to allow urban farming, cutting the distance food travels from where it's grown to where it's sold.

Ms Rankin said urban farming benefits communities and should be allowed, but not relied upon.

"They cannot meet the demand on their own and must be complementary to primary production," she said.

Food production also needs a workforce strategy, and farmers should be able to use their land to diversify through tourism and renewable energy, the report recommends.

NSW Farmers is concerned by "the idea that renewables is only a benefit for farmers".

"We also need to recognise that productive agricultural land is a finite resource that we should seek to preserve for food production," Ms Rankin said.

A response to the committee's report from government is due by May, but an election could change the government before then.