Authors:Duncan Hilchey Pages: 1–3 - 1–3 Abstract: First paragraph: This fall of 2022 issue includes open-call papers on a wide range of food systems topics, with a cluster focused on the concept of economies of community. Economies of community occurs when stakeholders in a collective action project or program scale up, not by growing individually, but by growing as a group—by treating each other as equal partners, maintaining transparency in communications and in other transactions, and generating regular feedback for continuous improvement. Several examples of economies of community are provided in this issue. . . . PubDate: 2022-12-15 DOI: 10.5304/jafscd.2022.121.016 Issue No:Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Authors:Rachel Black, Adalie Duran Pages: 19–3 - 19–3 Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the weaknesses of the U.S. national food system, with grocery store shelves emptied in March and April 2020 and COVID outbreaks reported throughout the summer of 2020 at meat processing plants across the country. Fleetingly, Americans turned to local farms to ensure they could access food safely in a time of uncertainty. This paper examines the economies of community that formed around local farms and how direct engagements between consumers and producers in the face of the pandemic deepened these economic structures that often put community well-being above profits. Within a capitalist system that prioritizes efficient mass production, economies of community illustrate that solidarity can improve local food system resilience. Based on qualitative and quantitative research carried out in the summer of 2020 in New London County in southeastern Connecticut, this research draws on ethnographic interviews with small-scale farmers who developed innovative ways to feed some of their community’s most vulnerable members. Community economies show that we should not only depend on standardized large-scale farms and giant retail distribution; the American food system needs to continue to cultivate small-scale local production in order to improve resilience and food access. At present, the sustainability of producing and distributing food occurs at the farmer’s expense. The government needs to support local food producers so they can continue to play an integral part in community well-being. PubDate: 2022-12-06 DOI: 10.5304/jafscd.2022.121.011 Issue No:Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Authors:Ronan Le Velly, Mathieu Désolé, Carole Chazoule Pages: 35–4 - 35–4 Abstract: This article describes the construction of innovative beef supply chains observed in the Loire and Isère departments in France. The aim for their promoters was to build intermediated local food networks without leaving the organizing power in the intermediaries’ hands. The authors take the analytical framework of the sociology of “market agencements,” which focuses on market shaping processes, to show how the ranchers, slaughterhouses, wholesalers, and retailers went about defining quality, prices, and the logistics and administrative organization of their supply chains. They also underscore three characteristics of intermediated supply chain partnerships, namely, the search for collective performance, collective negotiation of the rules of the game, and collective learning. PubDate: 2022-12-08 DOI: 10.5304/jafscd.2022.121.013 Issue No:Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Authors:Ella Furness, Angelina Sanderson Bellamy, Adrian Clear, Samantha Mitchell Finnigan, J. Elliot Meador, Susanna Mills, Alice Milne, Ryan Sharp Pages: 63–7 - 63–7 Abstract: Community supported agriculture (CSA) schemes (programs) provide an alternative means for obtaining produce, through direct purchase from farms. They are also often driven by a vision of transforming the current mainstream food system and seek to build a community of people who support this vision. Social capital refers to the networks and ties between people and groups and the impact of these ties on access to influence, information, opportunity, and ability to organize. Social capital is built by CSAs and helps foster and stabilize the grassroots agricultural innovations that are needed for the development of sustainable food systems. Using the concept of social capital, we studied communication methods of four CSAs in the UK, examining the interactions between CSAs and their members and within each of their membership groups. We carried out in-depth interviews with 49 CSA members to establish what interactions they had with their CSA and with other members, and analyzed our data thematically to identify the characteristics of interactions that were important to participants. We consider how our research may benefit CSA organizations by enabling them to learn what their members want and to learn about the varied ways in which members conceptualize their experiences of community derived from their membership. We found that the various CSA communication strategies, which consist of frequent and varying virtual and face-to-face interactions, are able to promote development of both bridging and bonding social capital. Overall, there is a desire for social connection in CSA memberships. Furthermore, in CSAs where members can interact easily, there is potential for CSA membership to provide members with communication that is important as a source of both knowledge and social connection. CSAs can maximize both social capital and member satisfaction by using a range of communication media and methods to meet their members’ circumstances and preferences. PubDate: 2022-11-28 DOI: 10.5304/jafscd.2022.121.009 Issue No:Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Authors:Colleen Hammelman, Dylan Turner Pages: 95–1 - 95–1 Abstract: During the global COVID-19 pandemic, food systems have been affected by supply-chain disruptions, shifting employment trends, and increasing prices that change organization and business operations, increase food insecurity, and influence the broader economy. Much of the early scholarship regarding pandemic trends pointed to root causes in the corporate food regime and called for seeing the crisis as an opportunity for transformational change. Relying on surveys and in-depth interviews with food system stakeholders, this paper describes the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on food businesses and organizations in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA. We examined the challenges created during the pandemic and related responses by stakeholders. Our research found that the pandemic’s impacts have been mixed. Most stakeholders identified both barriers and opportunities, reporting great upheaval and disruption but also new opportunities for innovation and collaboration. We argue that, while many positive innovations and quick responses were generated, ongoing challenges are indicative of widespread food system vulnerabilities created by a corporate food regime that produces thin margins while limiting the ability of stakeholders to pursue transformational change. Much of the existing literature considers the pandemic’s effects on individual producers and eaters, as well as large-scale structural shifts, yet less attention has been paid to the responses of food system organizations and businesses. This research contributes to food systems literature through its focus on food system actors to better understand how the food system is changing during the pandemic. PubDate: 2022-11-14 DOI: 10.5304/jafscd.2022.121.008 Issue No:Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Authors:Amy Carrad, Lizzy Turner, Nick Rose, Karen Charlton, Belinda Reeve Pages: 115– - 115– Abstract: Australian local governments undertake a range of activities that can contribute to a healthy, sustainable, and equitable food system. However, their engagement in food system governance is highly uneven, and only a handful have developed dedicated food system policies. This article reports on case studies of food system policy development and implementation in six local governments in the states of New South Wales and Victoria. The main motivators for policy and program development were to improve environmental sustainability, reduce food waste, improve diet-related health and food security, and support local, sustainable agriculture. Key steps included consulting with the community, identifying local food-related issues, and developing policy solutions. Local government activities targeted many dimensions of the food system, and policy implementation processes included hiring dedicated food system employees, creating partnerships with organizations outside local government, advocacy to higher levels of government for policy and legislative change, and program evaluation. The research also identified key enablers of and barriers to policy development and implementation, including factors internal to local government (e.g., presence/absence of local champions, high-level leadership, and a supportive internal culture) as well as important state- and federal-level constraints, including absence of comprehensive policy frameworks for food and nutrition, of dedicated funding for local government food system work, and of leadership for food system governance from higher levels of government. The authors conclude with recommendations for strengthening the role of Australian local governments in creating a healthy, sustainable, and equitable food system, applicable to both local governments and to Australian state and federal governments. These recommendations may also be useful to local governments in other national jurisdictions. PubDate: 2022-11-14 DOI: 10.5304/jafscd.2022.121.007 Issue No:Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Authors:Caroline Paras, Tracy Michaud, Matthew Hoffman Pages: 141– - 141– Abstract: Tourism generates billions of dollars in New England. Maine and Vermont rely heavily on the iconic imagery of lobstering and dairy farming to attract visitors to their states. The collapse of either industry would not only deal a direct economic and cultural blow to their respective states but be compounded by their impact on the tourism industry. How do these industries work in symbiosis with tourism' From the biological world, symbiosis is the close interaction of two different species in a mutually beneficial or parasitic relationship. To what extent do these primary sector industries benefit from tourism and how might the benefits of tourism be more effectively shared with farmers and fishermen' Using in-depth interviews, this exploratory study captures perceptions of tourism’s value to farmers in Vermont and fishermen in Maine as a place to start this important conversation. While tourists consume less than 10% of the bounty from Vermont dairy farmers and Maine lobstermen, producers capture a variety of other benefits from tourism, including such economic benefits as the opportunity to promote their company or industry brand, attract new customers, generate supplemental income, and create employment opportunities, along with non-economic benefits such as the opportunity to provide authentic experiences, create great places, showcase their conservation efforts, and highlight their family’s pride and heritage. Public policy could redistribute the benefits of tourism to facilitate a more mutually beneficial symbiosis, including direct subsidies to producers, preservation of working landscapes, marketing and branding activities, and investment in cooperative infrastructure. PubDate: 2022-12-12 DOI: 10.5304/jafscd.2022.121.014 Issue No:Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Authors:Chantelle Dacunha, Eric Ng, Sarah Elton Pages: 157– - 157– Abstract: In 2021, Canada’s federal government made a historic commitment to develop a national school food policy. Among overlapping challenges of increasing food insecurity, rising food costs, and the impact on food systems from climate change, there is now an opportunity to create a school food environment that ensures universal access to nutritious foods and supports sustainability in food systems. A universal school food program can ensure that all children, regardless of income, access the recommended nutritious foods and can promote climate-friendly diets. Such school food programs can also support local farmers and regional economies. In this paper, we outline the policy context for the new Canada’s Food Guide and the researched benefits of school food. We argue that Canada’s Food Guide can support a healthy school environment that is equitable and that promotes sustainability in the food system by embracing founding principles of diet equity and sustainability. Our concluding discussion outlines issues to be addressed in implementation. PubDate: 2022-12-02 DOI: 10.5304/jafscd.2022.121.010 Issue No:Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Authors:Lars Chinburg Pages: 187– - 187– Abstract: First paragraphs: In Perilous Bounty, Tom Philpott builds a meticulously researched argument that the U.S. is too reliant on farming methods and economic systems that are destroying our critical ecosystems. Mixing investigative journalism, eye-opening statistics, and farmer profiles, he paints a stark picture of the current state of industrial agriculture. He focuses on the two predominant U.S. agricultural regions, presents the major challenges facing each region, and discusses the “handful of seed-pesticide corporations, investment funds, and magnates who benefit from these dire trends" (p. 8). He begins in California, where the agricultural industry faces drought, catastrophic flooding, reduced snowmelt, and overdrawn aquifers. A primary takeaway is that as aquifers are overdrawn, “dwindling water means ever more emphasis on pricey export-oriented snack crops—and less on fruit and vegetable crops” (p. 72). The depletion of groundwater threatens future agricultural production in the state on which we depend for more than 90% of the “broccoli, carrots, garlic, celery, grapes, tangerines, plums, and artichokes; at least 75% of the cauliflower, apricots, lemons, strawberries, and raspberries; more than 40% of our lettuce, cabbage, oranges, peaches and peppers” (p. 17), as well as nearly 100% of the almonds, walnuts, and pistachios we eat. In short, aquifer depletion is severely threatening our national salad bowls. This is exacerbated by the effects of climate change, with increased likelihood of droughts and flooding. PubDate: 2022-12-07 DOI: 10.5304/jafscd.2022.121.012 Issue No:Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Authors:Matthew Hoffman Pages: 191– - 191– Abstract: First paragraph: The steady drumbeat of headlines this year revealing the harms caused by concentrated ownership in the food system (Anderson & Weaver, 2022; Gutman, 2022; Hope-D’Anieri, 2022; Krupnick, 2022; Qiu, 2022; Snodgrass, 2022) shows renewed interest in a topic that was a central concern of American politics in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The revised edition of Philip Howard’s Concentration and Power in the Food System comes just in time to help us understand not only the degree and nature of concentration in our food system, but also how various kinds of concentration enable the exercise of power in ways that were unanticipated by earlier anti-trust legislation and which need to be addressed in new ways. PubDate: 2022-12-13 DOI: 10.5304/jafscd.2022.121.015 Issue No:Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
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