Committee
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee 17 February 2026 [Draft]
17 Feb 2026 · S6 · Health, Social Care and Sport Committee
Item of business
Food Standards Scotland and the First National Good Food Nation Plan
Heather Kelman
Watch on SPTV
I will start with the immediate challenges. The SPS agreement that we are going into with Europe will give us a huge challenge, as the 1,300 pieces of legislation that we have prepared over the past while now have to be closely reviewed again to identify those areas where we have differentiated a little bit from Europe. That will require a number of instruments to be brought back, so I suspect that this committee will also be challenged by that in the months ahead. That challenge is really difficult. We have estimated that we will need anything up to 30 members of staff to help us with that work, given the timetable against which we are likely to be expected to deliver. We have already done internal restructuring with the aim of releasing staff to work on identifying the differentiation between ourselves and Europe, and we have begun doing that work.The second big challenge relates to our SAFER programme, through which we are looking at the challenges that have been presented across Scotland by the reduction in environmental health capacity in local authorities alongside the need to still deliver an effective food law enforcement system. We are looking at data, digital analysis and intelligence and trying to modernise the whole system, which we estimate will take us about five years in total. We have started that work and have set the ball rolling on it. That will be a huge transformational programme.Our programme board has 30-odd members on it, because we have to have representatives from Government, the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, local authorities, industry and so on. It is a big transformational change programme, but it is very exciting. I think that Scotland will reap the benefits of it, with both internal and external standards being demonstrated to be better.There is also a budget challenge, as is happening in every part of Scottish public sector life. We are very grateful for the additional funding that we have in next year’s budget, but it will still be less than what we have spent this year by about £1 million. We therefore have a challenge in relation to finance, but we are working closely with the Government to see what can be done as we try to deliver our legal functions while having new challenges coming at us. We also still have to keep balanced books at the end of the day and try not to stress our workforce too much by overworking them.
In the same item of business
09:15
The Convener
SNP
The second item on our agenda is to take evidence from a panel of witnesses on the work of Food Standards Scotland and the first national good food nation pl...
David Torrance (Kirkcaldy) (SNP)
SNP
Good morning. To what extent has Food Standards Scotland achieved its stated outcomes and statutory objectives over the life of its previous strategy?
Heather Kelman (Food Standards Scotland)
That is a good opening question. We have been incredibly busy over the period of our previous strategy. As people are aware, we went through a few changes wi...
Geoff Ogle (Food Standards Scotland)
Under the previous strategy, we made good advances in developing digital data capability. For example, we used to take about six months to produce a report o...
David Torrance
SNP
You know where I am going now. Could you describe and explain the mission and outcomes of the new strategy? How was the new strategy developed, and how has y...
Heather Kelman
Everything that we do in the strategy is drawn from the Food (Scotland) Act 2015. This time, because of the tightness of our resources, we have gone back to ...
Geoff Ogle
The World Health Organization produced a strategy that set out the criteria for an effective food safety authority, and we did an assessment against that as ...
Heather Kelman
Our final principle is about public service reform and demonstrating that, over the next period, we will do everything that we can to make sure that the publ...
David Torrance
SNP
This is my final question. What particular challenges does your organisation face over the next five years?
Heather Kelman
I will start with the immediate challenges. The SPS agreement that we are going into with Europe will give us a huge challenge, as the 1,300 pieces of legisl...
Geoff Ogle
Post-election, regardless of the result or the make-up of the Parliament, a serious question needs to be asked about public health—dietary health—and what ne...
David Torrance
SNP
Thank you. I have no further questions.
Sandesh Gulhane (Glasgow) (Con)
Con
Good morning. There is a sum of £4.4 million to support local authorities, health boards and the newly established Scottish Food Commission. What is the tota...
Heather Kelman
We are not the Food Commission. Mary Brennan may know.
Professor Mary Brennan (Living Good Food Nation Lab)
I am here primarily in my University of Edinburgh capacity. However, as I believe the committee is aware, I am one of the commissioners appointed to the Scot...
Sandesh Gulhane
Con
It is not great that we do not have clear monetary figures. What modelling—
Professor Brennan
I can certainly come back to you on that. As I explained, I was invited primarily in my University of Edinburgh capacity rather than as a Scottish food commi...
Sandesh Gulhane
Con
Thank you. I will just stay with you, Professor Brennan. What modelling has been done on the cumulative regulatory impact on small Scottish food producers?
Professor Brennan
By the Scottish Food Commission?
Sandesh Gulhane
Con
By anyone.
Professor Brennan
Do you mean the cumulative effect of regulation?
Sandesh Gulhane
Con
Yes.
Professor Brennan
I have not been involved in that through the living good food nation lab, and it is certainly not something that has been undertaken by the Scottish Food Com...
Sandesh Gulhane
Con
Are you saying that we do not have safe, sustainable and fair conditions for businesses?
Professor Brennan
Of course we have. That is where regulation, legislation and policy play a role, as their use provides us with confidence and enforcement mechanisms to ensur...
Sandesh Gulhane
Con
Are you saying that it is those things now?
Professor Brennan
Yes.
Sandesh Gulhane
Con
What safeguards are in place for rural economies—in particular, for livestock farmers?
Professor Brennan
At the heart of the Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022 and other legislation is a vision of better connection across the various outcome areas. Those outco...