In late 2025, the Citizen Advisory Council (CAC) ran What Works Here Inquiries in four very different regions of England: Cornwall, York and North Yorkshire, Liverpool and Merseyside, and the North East. The CAC met more than eighty people, with different connections to food systems; those who grow, catch, make, sell and share food for a living, and those with responsibilities for the health and prosperity of their regions – doctors, council leaders and mayors.

In every region, people are already creating real value for their communities through food – despite a food economy optimised for cheap calories and shareholder profits. 

This report outlines the barriers that hold good food back and regional and national actions that can make food work better. These findings will feed into the government’s Good Food Cycle.