Food Standards Agency Data Science Hackathon

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is an independent government department working across England, Wales and Northern Ireland to protect public health and consumers’ wider interest in food. We are responsible for making sure food is safe and what it says it is.

The FSA is looking to draw new insights from its social science data and identify where there may be gaps in our evidence.

Specifically, we want to better understand:

• What, if any, are the linkages between food allergies and/or food intolerance and health in the UK?

• Does food insecurity impact on 'risky food behaviour'?

• What are the key drivers of trust in food?

• What new data should we start collecting to help answer these questions?

Why should I come?

• To help contribute to answering crucial policy questions

• To develop your analytical and data science skill set – you will have over 7 hours of hands on ‘hacking time’ and technical support staff will be on hand throughout the day.

• To meet other data enthusiasts and work on a collaborative data science project

• To network with others working across government, industry, academia and the third sector

• It’s something to put on your CV

• For the opportunity to win some fantastic prizes, including £500 Amazon vouchers for the team with the best insights

• There will be plenty of goodies to take away with you (stationery, stickers, reusable coffee cup and more!)

• Food and drink will be provided throughout the day

• It’s free!

Who should come?

The Hackathon is open to anyone interested in exploring these important policy questions and/or who wants to develop their data science skills – whether you are a data scientist, student, researcher, academic, statistician, policy maker, or whether you work in government, industry, academia or in the third sector, everyone is welcome!

Participants will work in teams and we will ensure that each team has someone who is experienced in data science and coding (e.g. Python or R). Technical support staff will also be on hand on the day.

What will happen on the day?

On the day, participants will be asked to get into teams (of no more than 5 people) and pick one policy question to explore using the datasets provided. You will then have over 7 hours of hands on ‘hacking time’ during which refreshments will be provided.

At the end of the day, each team will have a chance to present their findings to a panel of judges and a prize of £500 amazon vouchers will be awarded to the team with the best insights.

Some additional prizes will also be up for grabs throughout the afternoon and there will be plenty of other goodies for you to take away with you (stationery, reusable mugs, stickers, and more!)

Which datasets will I be exploring?

Core datasets, including FSA's Food & You Survey and Public Attitudes Tracker will be provided to participants in advance. A list of relevant open-source data will also be provided.

Do I have to pay to come?

No, this event is free!

How do I sign up?

You can sign up for the event by clicking ‘Register’ at the top of this page. Places are limited so please register early. Please note on the day we will not be able to allow entry to anyone who has not registered. Please contact us at [email protected] if you have any further questions.