Abstract
The production and distribution of food are among the hot topics debated in the context of sustainable development. Short food supply chains (SFSCs) are now widely believed to be more sustainable in comparison to mass food delivery systems. To date, very little quantitative evidence exists on the impacts of various types of food supply chains. Using a cross-sectional quantitative approach, this study assesses the sustainability of distribution channels in short and long food supply chains based on 208 food producers across seven countries: France, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Poland, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam. Ten distribution channel types are used in this study. To provide a comprehensive sustainability assessment, a set of economic, social, and environmental indicators are applied. Indicators commonly used in the literature are used, supported by original indicators constructed specifically for the present study. In total, 486 chains are examined and the study confirms that individual producers participate simultaneously in several, short and long chains. Participation in SFSCs is beneficial for producers from an economic perspective. SFSCs allow producers to capture a large proportion of margin otherwise absorbed by different intermediaries. It appears, however, that ’longer’ supply channels generate lower environmental impacts per unit of production when measured in terms of food miles and carbon footprint. Finally, ambiguous results are found regarding social dimension, with significant differences across types of chains.
Highlights
Traditional food deliveries based on direct supplies or sales in physical market places were the forerunner of today’s short food supply chains (SFSCs)
Focusing on the distribution stage of food chains, we evaluate the economic, social, and environmental sustainability of SFSCs in a quantitative assessment of key performance indicators
An example of the incorporation of social aspects into the definition of SFSCs is the proposition of the European Rural Development Regulation 1305/2013 [15] where a “‘short supply chain’ means a supply chain has a limited number of economic operators, committed to co-operation, local economic development, and close geographical and social relations between producers, processors and consumers” [15]
Summary
Traditional food deliveries based on direct supplies or sales in physical market places (farmers’ markets) were the forerunner of today’s short food supply chains (SFSCs). Whereas the operation of local chains may still be relevant in many geographical territories, their importance may have diminished due to the growing competition from discount food stores in the cities, as well as the steady out-migration of people away from rural areas, creating a further geographical distance from the primary production, or raw processing of products and final consumption. Nowadays, both SFSCs and ‘local food systems’ are often considered to be sustainable and are widely promoted in agricultural policy, in the European Union. The production phase (farming system) is omitted here, assuming that regardless of the production system used, producers diversify the sales channels
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