Conclusion

2019 ◽  
pp. 148-170
Author(s):  
David Schlosberg ◽  
Luke Craven
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Local Food ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Economic Insecurity ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
Sustainable Fashion ◽  
Prefigurative Politics ◽  
Local Impacts ◽  
Alternative Practices

We conclude with a discussion of the potential of the sustainable material movements we examine in local food systems, community energy, and sustainable fashion. The focus is on the breadth and diversity of the influence of such movements—from small-scale and local impacts on political engagement and environmental sustainability, to the economic empowerment of local businesses and its impact on economic insecurity, to larger issues of systemic change in production and consumption systems. We discuss both the actual potential, as well as the real critiques and limitations, of sustainable materialist action. And we end with a return to the value of positing possibilities, alternative practices, and prefigurative politics in social movements.

Sustainable Materialism

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Schlosberg ◽  
Luke Craven
Keyword(s):  
Everyday Life ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Basic Needs ◽  
New Materialism ◽  
Environmental Groups ◽  
Consumer Responses ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
Social Motivations ◽  
Sustainable Fashion ◽  
Prefigurative Politics

A growing number of environmental groups focus on more sustainable practices in everyday life, from the development of new food systems, to community solar, to more sustainable fashion. No longer willing to take part in unsustainable practices and institutions, and not satisfied with either purely individualistic and consumer responses or standard political processes and movement tactics, many activists and groups are increasingly focusing on restructuring everyday practices of the circulation of the basic needs of everyday life. This work labels such action sustainable materialism, and examines the political and social motivations of activists and movement groups involved in this growing and expanding practice. The central argument is that these movements are motivated by four key factors: frustration with the lack of accomplishments on broader environmental policies; a desire for environmental and social justice; an active and material resistance to the power of traditional industries; and a form of sustainability that is attentive to the flow of materials through bodies, communities, economies, and environments. In addition to these motivations, these movements demonstrate such material action as political action, in contrast to existing critiques of new materialism as apolitical or post-political. Overall, sustainable materialism is explored as a set of movements with unique qualities, based in collective rather than individual action, a dedication to local and prefigurative politics, and a demand that sustainability be practiced in everyday life—starting with the materials and flows that provide food, power, clothing, and other basic needs.

scholarly journals Local food systems: potential for new market connections for family farming

2020 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Borges de Souza ◽  
Armando Fornazier ◽  
Mauro Eduardo Delgrossi
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Local Food ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Local Food Systems ◽  
Local Production ◽  
Family Farming ◽  
Research Gaps ◽  
Family Farmers ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
Primary Focus

Abstract In recent years, local food systems have come to be seen as a new possibility in creating markets for family farming. These systems are based on local production and consumption structures, with a primary focus on sustainability, locality and proximity. It is essential to understand the dynamics of these systems and their impact in the context of family farmers. Thus, this article seeks to identify in the literature the main theories and concepts used in the analysis of “local food systems”, verifying the state of the art of its theoretical elements related to the concept of “family farming” in Brazilian and international academia. The methodological procedure employed was a systematic literature review following the Methodi Ordinatio protocol, covering 30 articles indexed in the search portal Periódicos - Capes and in the database ProQuest. The main approaches included in this theme are presented in a summarized form, as well as the research gaps in the area are identified. The results show that these concepts involve themes such as local rural development, politicization of consumption, sustainability, market niches, agroecology, territorial valorization, and institutional programs.

scholarly journals Alternative Local Food Shopping Communities in Hungary

2019 ◽  
Vol 19(34) (2) ◽  
pp. 7-21
Author(s):  
Izabella Bakos ◽  
Anikó Khademi-Vidra
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Consumer Behaviour ◽  
Local Food ◽  
Close Correlation ◽  
Retail Trade ◽  
Local Food Systems ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Food Shopping ◽  
Two Samples ◽  
Significant Difference

As a result of concerns about the long-term sustainability of globalized retail trade and the stronger presence of health conscious consumer behaviour, governments and groups of conscious consumers worldwide are increasingly focusing on the promotion and development of local food systems and small-scale retail chains and the production of quality local food products to promote the market. In our paper, we would like to give an overview of community-led alternative types of local food systems, with particular attention to shopping community-type consumer and consumer communities. We also describe the main results of our primary research in the population and the shopping community. During the questionnaire we revealed general consumer behaviour and the demand and attitude of local food, the popularity of the customer communities in the settlement of the respondents. In the survey conducted among members of the consumer community, we looked at the analytical areas designated as a target in the population questionnaire for the purpose of comparability and our aim was to explore the sociometrics and lifestyles of communities as well as their community experiences and possible developments. Our hypothesis is that there is a close correlation between the respondents with higher education and income and the preferences of local food. Furthermore, it is assumed that there is a significant difference between the food consumption behaviors of the two samples examined.

scholarly journals Value Chain Analysis of Chaya (Mayan Spinach) in Guatemala

2019 ◽  
Vol 74 (1) ◽  
pp. 100-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadezda Amaya ◽  
Stefano Padulosi ◽  
Gennifer Meldrum
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Eating Habits ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Value Chain Analysis ◽  
Consumer Awareness ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Chain Analysis ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
Agriculture And Food

AbstractChaya is a highly nutritious perennial leafy vegetable native to Mesoamerica. This drought-resistant crop has low production and consumption levels in Guatemala, but has the potential to help agriculture and food systems be more nutritious and resilient. This study analyzed the value chain of chaya in Guatemala, and identified bottlenecks and opportunities for its use-enhancement. This research, the first of its kind applied to this crop in Guatemala, combined Rapid Market Appraisal tools. Small-scale chaya production, consumption, and marketing were observed in three focal sites (Guatemala City, Petén, and Dry Corridor). It was observed that producers are not motivated to produce chaya commercially and vendors are unwilling to sell it because of low demand and profitability. One Guatemalan company identified produces nutraceutical chaya products with few sales points in the country and occasionally abroad. Low demand is a primary bottleneck in the value chain due to lack of consumer awareness, changing eating habits, limited recipes, and availability in home-gardens. There is also a reluctance to grow, consume, or sell a crop perceived as a “food of the poor.” Low prices and profitability were other constraints registered. The findings can inform future interventions for enhancing the use of this crop to fight malnutrition.

The First Course

2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 109-129
Author(s):  
Michelle Moon ◽  
Cathy Stanton
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Public History ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Local Food ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Living History ◽  
Historic Sites

The current enthusiasm for “local food” offers public historians an opportunity to strengthen civic dialogues about place, land and energy use, labor, economy, health, and governance. Moving beyond conventional exhibitry and living history approaches challenges public history practitioners and institutions to confront politicized “real-life” aspects of food systems, but it also offers important benefits to those engaged in the reshaping of both scaled-down food systems and civically engaged museums and historic sites. A nuanced, reflexive engagement with food and farm history can be a way to address much broader issues of economic, institutional, and environmental sustainability.

scholarly journals Small‐scale fisheries and local food systems: Transformations, threats and opportunities

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert I Arthur ◽  
Daniel J Skerritt ◽  
Anna Schuhbauer ◽  
Naazia Ebrahim ◽  
Richard M Friend ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Local Food ◽  
Local Food Systems ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Small Scale Fisheries

scholarly journals Building a safety buffer for European food security: the role of small-scale food production and local ecological and gastronomic knowledge in light of COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 10
Author(s):  
Renata Sõukand ◽  
Raivo Kalle ◽  
Michele Filippo Fontefrancesco ◽  
Andrea Pieroni
Keyword(s):  
Food Production ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Small Firms ◽  
Local Food ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Food Chains ◽  
Community Based ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Safe Food

The lockdown caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has created a situation in which food availability is affected not only by the availability of money but also by the availability of food itself. On the basis of five pillars, including 1) supporting community-based farming, 2) defending small firms, 3) developing narratives on the high value of local food,4) encouraging subsistence gardening and foraging in the wild, and 5) promoting local ecological and gastronomic knowledge, the article points a way forward to attain greater sustainability and resilience of safe food chains that starts with reassessing the relevance of local food systems.

scholarly journals Growing and Eating Food during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Farmers’ Perspectives on Local Food System Resilience to Shocks in Southern Africa and Indonesia

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (20) ◽  
pp. 8556
Author(s):  
Nicole Paganini ◽  
Kustiwa Adinata ◽  
Nomonde Buthelezi ◽  
David Harris ◽  
Stefanie Lemke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Informal Economy ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Local Food ◽  
Local Food Systems ◽  
Research Network ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Small Scale Farmers

The COVID-19 outbreak forced governments to make decisions that had adverse effects on local food systems and supply chains. As a result, many small-scale food producers faced difficulties growing, harvesting, and selling their goods. This participatory research examines local small-scale farmers’ challenges as farmers but also as consumers and their coping strategies during the month of April and one week in June 2020. The study was initiated and conceptualized in collaboration with small-scale farmer members of an existing research network in selected urban and rural areas in South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Indonesia. Participants co-designed the research, collected and uploaded data through digital survey tools, and contributed to data analysis and interpretation. A common observation across regions is that the measures imposed in response to COVID-19 highlighted and partly exacerbated existing socio-economic inequalities among food system actors. Strict lockdowns in Cape Town, South Africa, and Masvingo, Zimbabwe, significantly restricted the production capacity of small-scale farmers in the informal economy and created more food insecurity for them. In Maputo, Mozambique, and Toraja and Java, Indonesia, local food systems continued to operate and were even strengthened by higher social capital and adaptive capacities.

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