scholarly journals “When We Stand up, They Have to Negotiate with Us”: Power Relations in and between an Agroindustrial and an Indigenous Food System in Bolivia

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 4001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johanna Jacobi ◽  
Aymara Llanque
Keyword(s):  
Political Ecology ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Food System ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Scientific Culture ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Production And Consumption

Our global food system is characterized by an increasing concentration and imbalance of power, with trade-offs between hunger, inequality, unsustainable production and consumption, and profit. A systematic analysis of power imbalances in food systems is required if we are to meet the 2030 Agenda vision of promoting sustainable production and consumption patterns and ending hunger and poverty. Such an analysis, with a view to a transformation to more sustainable and just food systems, requires tools to be developed and tested in real-life case studies of food systems. To better understand the structures and mechanisms around power in food systems, this study applies a political ecology lens. We adapted the “power cube” analysis framework that was proposed by the Institute of Development Studies for the analysis of spaces, forms, and levels of power. We apply the analysis of these three dimensions of power to two food systems in the tropical lowlands of Bolivia: one agroindustrial and one indigenous. After identifying food system actors, the food system spaces in which they interact, and what forms of power they use at what levels, we discuss some implications for an emerging scientific culture of power analyses in critical sustainability assessments. Mechanisms of hidden power undermine visible legislative power in both case studies, but in our example of an indigenous food system of the Guaraní people, visible power stays with a local community through their legally recognized and communally owned and governed territory, with important implications for the realization of the right to food.

scholarly journals Alternative Agri-Food Systems Under a Market Agencements Approach: The Case of Multifunctional Farming Activity in a Peri-Urban Area

Environments ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 61
Author(s):  
Maria Cecilia Mancini ◽  
Filippo Arfini ◽  
Federico Antonioli ◽  
Marianna Guareschi
Keyword(s):  
Urban Area ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Large Body ◽  
Alternative Food ◽  
Design Stage ◽  
Alternative Food Networks ◽  
Alternative Food Systems ◽  
Design And Implementation ◽  
Trade Offs

(1) Background: A large body of literature is available on the environmental, social, and economic sustainability of alternative food systems, but not much of it is devoted to the dynamics underlying their design and implementation, more specifically the processes that make an alternative food system successful or not in terms of its sustainability aims. This gap seems to be particularly critical in studies concerning alternative food systems in urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA). This paper explores how the design and implementation of multifunctional farming activity in a peri-urban area surrounding the city of Reggio Emilia in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy impact the achievement of its sustainability aims. (2) Methods: The environmental, social, and economic components of this project are explored in light of the sociology of market agencements. This method brings up the motivations of the human entities involved in the project, the role played by nonhuman entities, and the technical devices used for the fulfillment of the project’s aims. (3) Results: The alternative food system under study lacked a robust design phase and a shared definition of the project aims among all the stakeholders involved. This ended in a substantial mismatch between project aims and consumer expectations. (4) Conclusions: When a comprehensive design stage is neglected, the threefold aim concerning sustainability might not be achievable. In particular, the design of alternative food systems must take into account the social environment where it is intended to be put in place, especially in UPA, where consumers often live in suburban neighborhoods wherein the sense of community is not strong, thus preventing them from getting involved in a community-based project. In such cases, hybridization can play a role in the sustainability of alternative food networks, provided that some trade-offs occur among the different components of sustainability—some components of sustainability will be fully achieved, while others will not.

scholarly journals Social justice-oriented narratives in European urban food strategies: Bringing forward redistribution, recognition and representation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara A. L. Smaal ◽  
Joost Dessein ◽  
Barend J. Wind ◽  
Elke Rogge
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Food Policy ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Decision Rules ◽  
Food Justice ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Target Groups ◽  
Theory Of Justice

Abstract More and more cities develop urban food strategies (UFSs) to guide their efforts and practices towards more sustainable food systems. An emerging theme shaping these food policy endeavours, especially prominent in North and South America, concerns the enhancement of social justice within food systems. To operationalise this theme in a European urban food governance context we adopt Nancy Fraser’s three-dimensional theory of justice: economic redistribution, cultural recognition and political representation. In this paper, we discuss the findings of an exploratory document analysis of the social justice-oriented ambitions, motivations, current practices and policy trajectories articulated in sixteen European UFSs. We reflect on the food-related resource allocations, value patterns and decision rules these cities propose to alter and the target groups they propose to support, empower or include. Overall, we find that UFSs make little explicit reference to social justice and justice-oriented food concepts, such as food security, food justice, food democracy and food sovereignty. Nevertheless, the identified resources, services and target groups indicate that the three dimensions of Fraser are at the heart of many of the measures described. We argue that implicit, fragmentary and unspecified adoption of social justice in European UFSs is problematic, as it may hold back public consciousness, debate and collective action regarding food system inequalities and may be easily disregarded in policy budgeting, implementation and evaluation trajectories. As a path forward, we present our plans for the RE-ADJUSTool that would enable UFS stakeholders to reflect on how their UFS can incorporate social justice and who to involve in this pursuit.

scholarly journals For food space: theorizing alternative food networks beyond alterity

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Renata Blumberg ◽  
Helga Leitner ◽  
Kirsten Valentine Cadieux
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Political Ecology ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Agrarian Change ◽  
Alternative Food ◽  
Alternative Food Networks ◽  
Sustainable Livelihood ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
Food Networks

<p>In response to calls by scholars to deepen theoretical engagement in research on Alternative Food Networks (AFNs), in this article we critically discuss and assess major theoretical approaches deployed in the study of AFNs. After highlighting the strengths and limitations of each theoretical approach, we provide an alternative framework – which we refer to as the Geographical Political Ecology of Food Systems – that integrates the contributions that have emerged in the study of the alternative geographies of food with an understanding of capitalist processes in the food system. We do this by bringing together literature on the political ecology of food systems and multiple spatialities, including Doreen Massey's understanding of space as a heterogeneous multiplicity and Eric Sheppard's conceptualization of sociospatial positionality. We utilize research on agrarian change and AFNs in Eastern Europe to elaborate this approach. We argue that this new perspective helps navigate tensions in AFN scholarship, and provides new avenues for research and action. We focus particularly on the ability of AFNs to provide a sustainable livelihood for participating farmers, thus far a neglected topic in AFN research in Europe.</p><p><strong>Keywords: </strong>Alternative Food Networks, Eastern Europe, spatialities, positionality, livelihoods</p>

scholarly journals Guiding Nutritious Food Choices and Diets along Food Systems

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (17) ◽  
pp. 9501
Author(s):  
Beulah Pretorius ◽  
Jane Ambuko ◽  
Effie Papargyropoulou ◽  
Hettie C. Schönfeldt
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Food Supply ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Free Market ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Food Choices ◽  
Health Food ◽  
Trade Offs

Poor diets are responsible for more of the global burden of disease than sex, drugs, alcohol, and tobacco combined. Without good health, food security, and nutrition, development is unsustainable. How food is grown, distributed, processed, marketed, and sold determines which foods are available, affordable, and acceptable within the local cultural context. These factors guide food choices, influencing the quality of people’s diets, and hence they play a vital part in health. The food system is complex and is neither nutrition nor health driven. Good nutrition and human health are not seen as important supply chain outcomes, diminishing between the different processes and actors in the chain. This is in contrast to the environmental and labour concerns now also perceived as supply chain issues. Although food loss and waste is now appreciated as key to sustainable food supply chains, the critical role on nutrition security remains obscure. In a free market dispensation, the trade-offs between agricultural production and income generation versus nutrient delivery from farm to fork needs to be addressed. Investment and incentivised initiatives are needed to foster diverse food production, preservation, distribution and influence consumers’ behaviour and consumption. The decisions made at any stage of the food supply chain have implications on consumer choices, dietary patterns, and nutritional outcomes. Leveraging the entire food system is an underused policy response to the growing problem of unhealthy diets.

scholarly journals Global map and indicators of food system sustainability

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christophe Béné ◽  
Steven D. Prager ◽  
Harold A. E. Achicanoy ◽  
Patricia Alvarez Toro ◽  
Lea Lamotte ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Entire Range ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
Four Dimensions ◽  
Data Space ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Metric Dimensions ◽  
The Individual ◽  
System Sustainability

AbstractThis paper presents the first global map of food systems sustainability based on a rigorous protocol. The choice of the metric dimensions, as well as the individual indicators included in the metric, were initially identified from a thorough review of the existing literature. A rigorous inclusion/exclusion protocol was then used to refine the list and shorten it to a sub-set of 27 indicators. An aggregate sustainability score was then computed based on those 27 indicators organized into four dimensions: environment, social, food security & nutrition and economic. The paper shows how the availability of data (or lack therefore) results in an unavoidable trade-off between number of indicators and number of countries, and highlights how optimization can be used to present the most robust metric possible given the existence of this trade-offs in the data space. The process results in the computation of a global sustainability map covering 97 countries and 20 indicators. The sustainability scores obtained for each country are made available over the entire range of indicators.

scholarly journals The Future of Food Security, Nutrition and Health for Agri-food Systems Transformation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chin Yee Chan ◽  
Steven Prager ◽  
Jean Balie ◽  
Marta Kozicka ◽  
Guy Hareau ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Nutrition And Health ◽  
Adverse Health Outcomes ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Multiple Risks ◽  
Food Security And Nutrition ◽  
Systems Transformation ◽  
Inform Decision Making

Global progress towards food security and nutrition has been slow in many places and even reversing in others. Against the background of changes in population, income, technology, climate, and other drivers, the pressures on food systems are daunting. When designing and rolling out future interventions towards these goals it is of vital importance to utilize foresight knowledge to anticipate, shape, and prepare for alternative possible futures. Overcoming current and emerging challenges but also seizing opportunities as they present themselves requires continued efforts to provide robust analysis to inform decision making. Here we collated the latest insights from foresight studies around three central aspects within the food system. First, consumer demand and the changes this is undergoing is a key aspect shaping the food system itself as well as nutritional and environmental outcomes. Second, distributional inequalities and trade-offs within the food system have further been identified as key challenges to tackling adverse health outcomes of the current food system. And third, amplified by the COVID crisis, enhancing the resilience of the food system that is increasingly under threat from multiple risks has risen to the top of the agenda.

scholarly journals A sustainability compass for policy navigation to sustainable food systems

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aniek Hebinck ◽  
Monika Zurek ◽  
Thom Achterbosch ◽  
Björn Forkman ◽  
Anneleen Kuijsten ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Continue Development ◽  
Sustainable Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Sustainability Governance ◽  
Stakeholder Input ◽  
Sustainability Assessments

The growing acknowledgement that food systems require transformation has led to a call for comprehensive sustainability assessments to support decision-making. For frameworks to serve sustainability governance, they must show the trade-offs and unintended consequences that might result from policy decisions across key goals relevant to food system actors. This paper reviews existing literature and frameworks and builds on stakeholder input to present a sustainability compass with associated metrics for food system assessments. The compass defines sustainability scores for four societal goals, underpinned by areas of concern. The operationalisation approach for assessment balances policy-usability, system complexity and comprehensiveness, while providing actionable insights. It concludes by outlining additional challenges for research to continue development of food system frameworks that support sustainability governance.

scholarly journals Towards food systems transformation—five paradigm shifts for healthy, inclusive and sustainable food systems

Food Security ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruerd Ruben ◽  
Romina Cavatassi ◽  
Leslie Lipper ◽  
Eric Smaling ◽  
Paul Winters
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Paradigm Shifts ◽  
System Transformation ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Environmental Objectives ◽  
Participatory Institutions ◽  
Systems Transformation

AbstractFood systems must serve different societal, public health and individual nutrition, and environmental objectives and therefore face numerous challenges. Considering the integrated performances of food systems, this paper highlights five fundamental paradigm shifts that are required to overcome trade-offs and build synergies between health and nutrition, inclusive livelihoods, environmental sustainability and food system resilience. We focus on the challenges to raise policy ambitions, to harmonize production and consumption goals, to improve connectivity between them, to strengthen food system performance and to anchor the governance of food systems in inclusive policies and participatory institutions. Taken together, these shifts in paradigms shape a new discourse for food system transformation that will be capable to respond to current and future policy challenges.

scholarly journals The Future We Want: Sustainable Development Goals Accomplishment with Organic Agriculture

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 171-180
Author(s):  
Srđan Šeremešić ◽  
◽  
Željko Dolijanović ◽  
Mirela Tomaš Simin ◽  
Bojan Vojnov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Organic Agriculture ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Food System ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Resource Depletion ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Agriculture Systems

The aim of the paper is to enlighten the role that organic agriculture can have in the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Currently, sustainable agriculture systems are not adequately recognized in SDG and supported by the decision-makers. Given that agriculture plays one of the key roles in sustainable development accomplishment, the introduction of an organic agriculture can be a basis to implementing SDG. Organic agriculture has multiple benefits as most valuable option in redesigning food systems to achieve ecological, economic, and social sustainability. Moreover it could encompass and establish food system from field to fork necessary to complete the SDG without oversize resource depletion and negative impact on the environment. The study showed that by placing organic agriculture in the agenda of SDG it is possible to create conditions for sustainable development while identify and manage trade-offs in agriculture and maximising co-benefits.

scholarly journals Closing Research Investment Gaps for a Global Food Transformation

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex Bollington ◽  
Marcia DeLonge ◽  
Dhara Mungra ◽  
Matthew Hayek ◽  
Mustafa Saifuddin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
The United States ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Grain Legumes ◽  
Environmental Benefits ◽  
Farmer Adoption ◽  
Research Investment ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
Global Food

Recent calls for a global food transformation have centered on simultaneously improving human and environmental health, recognizing that food and nutrient diversity have declined over time while food systems have exacted a heavy climate and ecological toll. Grain legumes and coarse grain crops provide important human nutrition and environmental benefits, but the production and consumption of many of these crops remains relatively low compared to major commodities, such as maize, wheat, rice, and soy. Outstanding hurdles to scaling up these “minor commodity” crops include (among other things) their relatively lower yields, and lower farmer adoption, based partly on actual or perceived profitability and marketability. We hypothesize that these limitations are attributable in part to unequal funding for these crops' research and development (R&amp;D) both on a national and global scale. In the United States, we show that investment patterns for a snapshot of USDA-funded research grants from 2008 to 2019 consistently favor major commodity crops, which received 3 to 4.5 times more funding and 3 to 5 times as many grants than the minor commodity crop groups. This current USDA funding allocation poses a barrier to food system transformations. Achieving nutritious diets for planetary health requires more public agricultural investment toward minor commodity crops and increased collaboration between public health, nutrition, agriculture, and environmental sectors.

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