Alternative Food Network (AFN) is a broad term used for the definition of new food chains, characterized by a shortened relationship between the producer and the consumer, allow-ing to redistribute between them the social and economic benefits. In periurban agriculture, AFNs are a concrete way to better establish a direct contact between the urban area and its local farming system. At the local level there is also an increasing demand for local agricultural products by urban consumers as well as many examples of policies focused on the food provision for the city. At the same time the risk of having ephemeral experiences of AFNs, demand a deeper knowledge of the relationships between producers-suppliers and the other stakeholders of AFNs. The overall purpose of this contribution is to analyze the selling of local products in urban groceries and to compare their demands with the provision and production strategies of farmers involved in AFNs. The case study was the periurban area of Pisa (86.000 inhabitants, 6 municipalities). In this area, existing AFNs have already been described. Furthermore, several research and policy initiatives have investigated the role of short food supply chain in the area of the Province of Pisa (Piano del Cibo). To explore the relationships in AFNs, we surveyed 4 groceries with different legal status (association, cooperative, individual enterprise) which reflect different strategies to achieve a common goal: be an alternative of the conventional food distribution through the promotion of food quality. All the groceries are small, located in the city centre and they all have tried to have a direct contact with farmers-suppliers of the local products. The groceries involve about 10 farmers producing vegetables, meat, cereals, olive oil, while 32 farmers supplying these products and participating to AFNs were also surveyed in the surrounding area. Farmers’ interviews underlined a high potential for the urban food provision for the city, nevertheless all shops have report-ed troubles to find the local farmers and a lack of knowledge about the agricultural production system. This result suggests a discrepancy in the network at the local level between the supply and the demand strategies. This point confirms on the one hand the need of a deeper knowledge at the micro level about the constraints and conditions that enable actors to be involved in AFNs and some troubles in finding practical instruments for translating into practices the policy’s ambition.

AFNs in periurban areas: the meeting of food demand and supply as an emergent issue / R. Filippini, E. Marraccini, S. Lardon - In: Farming systems facing global challenges: Capacities and strategies / [a cura di] H. Schobert, M.-C. Riecher, H. Fischer, T. Aenis, A. Knierim. - Berlin : IFSA Europe, 2014. - ISBN 978-3-9813957-5-4. - pp. 1643-1652 (( Intervento presentato al 11. convegno European IFSA Symposium : 1-4 April tenutosi a Berlin nel 2014.

AFNs in periurban areas: the meeting of food demand and supply as an emergent issue

R. Filippini
Primo
;
2014

Abstract

Alternative Food Network (AFN) is a broad term used for the definition of new food chains, characterized by a shortened relationship between the producer and the consumer, allow-ing to redistribute between them the social and economic benefits. In periurban agriculture, AFNs are a concrete way to better establish a direct contact between the urban area and its local farming system. At the local level there is also an increasing demand for local agricultural products by urban consumers as well as many examples of policies focused on the food provision for the city. At the same time the risk of having ephemeral experiences of AFNs, demand a deeper knowledge of the relationships between producers-suppliers and the other stakeholders of AFNs. The overall purpose of this contribution is to analyze the selling of local products in urban groceries and to compare their demands with the provision and production strategies of farmers involved in AFNs. The case study was the periurban area of Pisa (86.000 inhabitants, 6 municipalities). In this area, existing AFNs have already been described. Furthermore, several research and policy initiatives have investigated the role of short food supply chain in the area of the Province of Pisa (Piano del Cibo). To explore the relationships in AFNs, we surveyed 4 groceries with different legal status (association, cooperative, individual enterprise) which reflect different strategies to achieve a common goal: be an alternative of the conventional food distribution through the promotion of food quality. All the groceries are small, located in the city centre and they all have tried to have a direct contact with farmers-suppliers of the local products. The groceries involve about 10 farmers producing vegetables, meat, cereals, olive oil, while 32 farmers supplying these products and participating to AFNs were also surveyed in the surrounding area. Farmers’ interviews underlined a high potential for the urban food provision for the city, nevertheless all shops have report-ed troubles to find the local farmers and a lack of knowledge about the agricultural production system. This result suggests a discrepancy in the network at the local level between the supply and the demand strategies. This point confirms on the one hand the need of a deeper knowledge at the micro level about the constraints and conditions that enable actors to be involved in AFNs and some troubles in finding practical instruments for translating into practices the policy’s ambition.
periurban farming; food system; constraints; on-farm surveys; stakeholders’ network
Settore AGR/01 - Economia ed Estimo Rurale
2014
Internation Farming System Association
https://edoc.hu-berlin.de/bitstream/handle/18452/14312/25uOpn8Kfyv2.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/634984
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