scholarly journals The Economic, Social, and Environmental Impacts of Farmers Markets: Recent Evidence from the US

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 3423
Author(s):  
Phillip Warsaw ◽  
Steven Archambault ◽  
Arden He ◽  
Stacy Miller
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
The United States ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Farmers Markets ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Regional Food ◽  
Recent Scholarship ◽  
Fresh Food

Farmers markets are regular, recurring gatherings at a common facility or area where farmers and ranchers directly sell a variety of fresh fruits, vegetables, and other locally grown farm products to consumers. Markets rebuild and maintain local and regional food systems, leading to an outsized impact on the food system relative to their share of produce sales. Previous research has demonstrated the multifaceted impacts that farmers markets have on the communities, particularly economically. Recent scholarship in the United States has expanded inquiry into social impacts that markets have on communities, including improving access to fresh food products and increasing awareness of the sustainable agricultural practices adopted by producers, as well developing tools for producers and market stakeholders to measure their impact on both producers and communities. This paper reviews the recent scholarship on farmers markets to identify recent trends and synthesizes the current evidence describing the ways in which farmers markets contribute to the wellbeing of their communities, as well as identifying areas for additional future research.

scholarly journals Promises of meat and milk alternatives: an integrative literature review on emergent research themes

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annika Lonkila ◽  
Minna Kaljonen
Keyword(s):  
Food Production ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Consumer Preferences ◽  
Technological Development ◽  
Scientific Journal ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Journal Articles ◽  
Research Themes ◽  
Social Scientific

AbstractIncreasing concerns for climate change call for radical changes in food systems. There is a need to pay more attention to the entangled changes in technological development, food production, as well as consumption and consumer demand. Consumer and market interest in alternative meat and milk products—such as plant based milk, plant protein products and cultured meat and milk—is increasing. At the same time, statistics do not show a decrease in meat consumption. Yet alternatives have been suggested to have great transitional potential, appealing to different consumer segments, diets, and identities. We review 123 social scientific journal articles on cell-based and plant-based meat and milk alternatives to understand how the positioning of alternatives as both same and different in relation to animal-based products influences their role within the protein transition. We position the existing literature into three themes: (1) promissory narratives and tensions on markets, (2) consumer preferences, attitudes, and behavioral change policies, (3) and the politics and ethics of the alternatives. Based on our analysis of the literature, we suggest that more research is needed to understand the broader ethical impacts of the re-imagination of the food system inherent in meat and milk alternatives. There is also a need to direct more attention to the impacts of meat and milk alternatives to the practices of agricultural practices and food production at the farm-level. A closer examination of these research gaps can contribute to a better understanding of the transformative potential of alternatives on a systemic level.

scholarly journals Quinoa’s Potential to Enhance Dietary Management of Obesity and Type-2 Diabetes: A Review of the Current Evidence

Diabetology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 77-94
Author(s):  
Alexander Little ◽  
Kevin Murphy ◽  
Patrick Solverson
Keyword(s):  
Type 2 Diabetes ◽  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
The United States ◽  
Lipid Absorption ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Dietary Management ◽  
Obesity And Diabetes

The prevalence of diet-induced obesity and type-2 diabetes remains a growing concern in the United States. As best management practices still include improved diet and physical activity, bioactive food components, contained within functional foods, show promise in curbing the cardiometabolic complications associated with excess weight and diabetes. Quinoa is an emerging candidate crop for its versatility in wide-ranging growing conditions as one approach to address food security, but it also contains several components that may serve as a dietary tool for post-industrial countries struggling with the health complications of caloric excess. Preliminary rodent feeding studies demonstrate that components within quinoa, namely, phytosteroids, phenolics, polysaccharides, and peptides, can prevent adiposity, dyslipidemia, and hyperglycemia. Mechanistic activity may involve reduced lipid absorption and adipogenesis, increased energy expenditure and glucose oxidation and corrected gut microbiota. Other intestinal actions may include blocked carbohydrate digestion with enhanced incretin signaling. Evidence in clinical trials is lacking and future research spanning cells to the clinic is needed to further elucidate the interesting preliminary reports reviewed here. Quinoa offers several unique attributes that could be harnessed to improve the dietary management of obesity and diabetes.

scholarly journals Grappling With Complex Food Systems to Reduce Obesity: A US Public Health Challenge

2018 ◽  
Vol 133 (1_suppl) ◽  
pp. 44S-53S ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Barnhill ◽  
Anne Palmer ◽  
Christine M. Weston ◽  
Kelly D. Brownell ◽  
Kate Clancy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
The United States ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Targeted Interventions ◽  
Health Community ◽  
Policies And Programs ◽  
State Programs

Despite 2 decades of effort by the public health community to combat obesity, obesity rates in the United States continue to rise. This lack of progress raises fundamental questions about the adequacy of our current approaches. Although the causes of population-wide obesity are multifactorial, attention to food systems as potential drivers of obesity has been prominent. However, the relationships between broader food systems and obesity are not always well understood. Our efforts to address obesity can be advanced and improved by the use of systems approaches that consider outcomes of the interconnected global food system, including undernutrition, climate change, the environmental sustainability of agriculture, and other social and economic concerns. By implementing innovative local and state programs, taking new approaches to overcome political obstacles to effect policy, and reconceptualizing research needs, we can improve obesity prevention efforts that target the food systems, maximize positive outcomes, and minimize adverse consequences. We recommend strengthening innovative local policies and programs, particularly those that involve community members in identifying problems and potential solutions and that embrace a broad set of goals beyond making eating patterns healthier. We also recommend undertaking interdisciplinary research projects that go beyond testing targeted interventions in specific populations and aim to build an understanding of the broader social, political, and economic context.

scholarly journals The EU’s farm to fork strategy: missing links for transformation

2020 ◽  
pp. 17-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sinead Mowlds
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Environmentally Friendly

The Farm-to-Fork strategy, launched in May 2020, is the first attempt at a European-wide approach to food systems of this scale. The strategy sets ambitious targets and aims to create a ‘fair, healthy, and environmentally friendly food system’. Yet, within the bounds of its own regulatory and legislative context (including the Green Deal, the Circular Economy Action Plan and the new Biodiversity Strategy 2030), the strategy falls short of recognising key links in and between the food system. This review posits that the strategy and its targets do not adequately consider the importance of transforming agricultural practices for environmental outcomes; of agricultural practices for nutrition outcomes; nor the links between how we value nutrition along the supply chain, from farm to fork

scholarly journals A systematic review of mHealth interventions for HIV prevention and treatment among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 1211-1220
Author(s):  
Kimberly M Nelson ◽  
Nicholas S Perry ◽  
Keith J Horvath ◽  
Laramie R Smith
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Hiv Prevention ◽  
Text Messaging ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
The United States ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Targeted Prevention ◽  
Prevention And Treatment ◽  
Sex With Men

Abstract The use of mobile health (mHealth) technologies addressing HIV disparities among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM) has increased. A systematic review of mHealth interventions for HIV prevention and treatment among GBMSM was conducted to summarize the current evidence and provide recommendations for future research. PRISMA guidelines were followed (PROSPERO ID: 148452). Studies identified via PubMed, PsychInfo, or Embase were included that (i) were in English, (ii) were published in a peer-reviewed journal prior to July 1, 2019, (iii) presented primary results, (iv) included only GBMSM, and (v) reported the results of an mHealth intervention (e.g., text message, phone/mobile application [app]) to improve HIV prevention or treatment outcomes. Of 1,636 identified abstracts, 16 published studies met inclusion criteria. Eleven studies were conducted in the United States. One study was a fully powered randomized controlled trial (RCT), seven were single-arm pilots with pre–post assessments, four were pilot RCTs, and four tested public health campaigns with post-assessments. Seven developed study-specific apps, five used text messaging, and four used existing social networking apps. Most (81%) targeted prevention outcomes. Nine cited a specific behavioral theory. All studies found that a mHealth approach was feasible and acceptable. All interventions provided evidence of preliminary efficacy or promising trends on primary outcomes. Although mHealth interventions for HIV prevention and treatment appear feasible and acceptable, most published studies are small pilot trials. Additional research assessing the efficacy and mechanisms of mHealth interventions is needed.

“Workarounds and Roadblocks”: Risk and Resistance among Food Movement Activists

2020 ◽  
pp. 232949652096562
Author(s):  
Andrew Raridon ◽  
Tamara L. Mix ◽  
Rachel L. Einwohner
Keyword(s):  
High Risk ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Southern Plains ◽  
Alternative Food Systems ◽  
Regional Food ◽  
The Social ◽  
Regional Food Systems ◽  
Food Movement

This article examines how activists involved in the food movement use different tactics intended to challenge and subvert the agrifood structures they encounter. We use data from interviews and participant observations with 57 food movement activists operating in less robust alternative food systems throughout the Southern Plains states of Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. Our respondents describe how they interpret their regional food systems as deliberately restrictive to the food movement and explain some of the tactical choices they make to maneuver around various constraints they claim hinder their food movement activism. In actively resisting the agricultural status quo, we find that some activists knowingly engage in forms of high-risk activism. We then examine the different framing devices food movement activists use to explain the risks generated by their tactical workarounds. Our findings contribute to the social movements and food system literature by showing how activists interpret and justify the risks generated by their resistance and by emphasizing the contextual nature of tactical choices and risk in social movement activism.

scholarly journals Michigan Farmers of Color and the Future of Sustainable Food Systems

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (01) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kimberly N. Carr ◽  
Vanessa Garcia Polanco ◽  
Shakara Tyler
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Ethnic Disparities ◽  
The United States ◽  
Agricultural System ◽  
Racial And Ethnic Disparities ◽  
Racial Justice ◽  
Sustainable Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Sustainable Food System

Historically, racial and ethnic disparities in agriculture and the food system experienced by farmers of color (FoC) in the United States and in Michigan stem from an exploitative and racialized agricultural system in which white people have primarily benefited and profited. Sustainable agriculture with a strong orientation toward racial justice can serve as a medium for building more racial equity and transforming our racialized food system. Such a medium ensures that the resources to participate and contribute to a sustainable food system are accessible to everyone, not just those with significant power and resources. Although the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is in the initial phases of developing a diversity, equity, and inclusion strategic plan, there is currently no specific plan to support and target FoC. While there are several programs performing this work from grassroot organizations, civic groups, extension services, and others, there is no comprehensive statewide effort to create support systems for FoC in Michigan. To address this issue, we recommend the creation of an incentivized farm program as a way to address agrarian racial and ethnic disparities experienced by FoC and advance an equitable and just sustainable food system within the state of Michigan.

scholarly journals Exploring the transformative potential of urban food: a future research agenda

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aniek Hebinck ◽  
Odirilwe Selomane ◽  
Esther Veen ◽  
Anke de Vrieze ◽  
Saher Hasnain ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Research Agenda ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Transformative Change ◽  
System Transformation ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Food Research ◽  
Future Research Agenda ◽  
Transformative Potential

Urban food systems are a key lever for transformative change towards sustainability, and research reporting on the role of urban food initiatives in supporting sustainability is increasing. However, an overview of such initiatives and their transformative potential is lacking, as contextual and disciplinary-fragmented research complicates what insights can be drawn to support larger-scale sustainability transformations. We provide such an overview by synthesizing multidisciplinary research on urban food initiatives and by exploring their transformative potential. We developed a typology for urban food initiatives and present a framework of processes and outcomes that are steppingstones to sustainable food system transformation. We show that different types of urban food initiatives perform distinct roles that support sustainability. Unpacking three areas of concern, we conclude with a future research agenda. This is a first step towards integration of urban food research and of providing urban food governance with the tools to shape more sustainable systems.

scholarly journals Systematic Review of Dietary Patterns and Sustainability in the United States

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 1016-1031 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah L Reinhardt ◽  
Rebecca Boehm ◽  
Nicole Tichenor Blackstone ◽  
Naglaa H El-Abbadi ◽  
Joy S McNally Brandow ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Dietary Patterns ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Food System ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
The United States ◽  
Dietary Guidelines ◽  
Rapid Expansion ◽  
Inclusion Criteria

ABSTRACT Improving awareness and accessibility of healthy diets are key challenges for health professionals and policymakers alike. While the US government has been assessing and encouraging nutritious diets via the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) since 1980, the long-term sustainability, and thus availability, of those diets has received less attention. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) examined the evidence on sustainable diets for the first time, but this topic was not included within the scope of work for the 2020 DGAC. The objective of this study was to systematically review the evidence on US dietary patterns and sustainability outcomes published from 2015 to 2019 replicating the 2015 DGAC methodology. The 22 studies meeting inclusion criteria reveal a rapid expansion of research on US dietary patterns and sustainability, including 8 studies comparing the sustainability of DGA-compliant dietary patterns with current US diets. Our results challenge prior findings that diets adhering to national dietary guidelines are more sustainable than current average diets and indicate that the Healthy US-style dietary pattern recommended by the DGA may lead to similar or increased greenhouse gas emissions, energy use, and water use compared with the current US diet. However, consistent with previous research, studies meeting inclusion criteria generally support the conclusion that, among healthy dietary patterns, those higher in plant-based foods and lower in animal-based foods would be beneficial for environmental sustainability. Additional research is needed to further evaluate ways to improve food system sustainability through both dietary shifts and agricultural practices in the United States.

Indigenous Food Systems: Battling Whiteness through Decolonization

1969 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katie King
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Community Gardens ◽  
The United States ◽  
Alternative Food ◽  
Farmers Markets ◽  
Alternative Food Networks ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Alternative Food Systems ◽  
Post Colonial ◽  
The North

Shaw (2006) argues that “the rubrics of difference against which Whiteness is commonly juxtaposed rarely includes Indigeneity, or the experiences of Indigenous peoples regardless of the North American domination of the field, and its settler context” (853). Viewing Canada and the United States as post-colonial nations, this paper seeks to broaden understandings of Indigenous food production, distribution, and consumption practices and/or projects and how they work to resist colonial histories of oppression. hooks (1992) defines decolonization as “a process of cultural and historical liberation; an act of confrontation with a dominant system of thought” (1). Using the concept of “Whiteness”, this research attempts to prove how small-scale Indigenous food systems located in North America decolonize dominant ways of seeing alternative food systems as white food spaces. To present this research to an interdisciplinary audience I will first attend to defining key concepts informing this research including: post-colonial nation, decolonization, Whiteness, and Indigeneity. I will then spend some time exploring what Sarah Whatmore describes as “Alternative Food Networks” (AFNs) and claims as “white food spaces”. Finally, in an attempt to decolonize alternative food systems as white spaces, I will share various forms of present-day, small-scale Indigenous food systems such as Wild Rice production by The White Earth Anishinaabe, the ‘Food from the Land’ program in the O-pipon-Na-Piwin Cree Nation, and various Indigenous farmers markets and community gardens.  

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