Future Food Systems Research Articles

Imagining Just and Sustainable Food Futures: Using Interactive Visualizations to Explore the Possible Land Uses and Food Systems Approaches in Revelstoke, Canada

Food systems are linked to multiple critical sustainability issues such as climate change, environmental degradation, and growing socioeconomic inequalities, and there is a clear need for transformative changes in how food systems are imagined and enacted. For transformations to occur, local governments and stakeholders must be able to consider achievable and desirable futures that involve radically different reconfigurations of space and land use. Based in Revelstoke, Canada, this study uses interactive visualization methods to engage local government and food systems stakeholders in an exploration of three future food systems scenarios that center on changes in food supply, food affordability, and food governance. An interactive visualization tool was developed using the Unity3D game engine, which visualizes how transformations of an underutilized railway site in Revelstoke may appear in 2100. The visualizations were presented to the study participants (n = 10) through an online, Zoom-based workshop, where ‘walkthroughs’ of the scenarios were performed by the researchers and the participants subsequently provided feedback. The results of this study indicate that visualization tools can elicit emotional responses, convey human relationships with food and nature, communicate power dynamics, and incorporate social justice considerations. The results also show that the visualization’s representation of local infrastructure and services, the completeness of a virtual environment, and the plausibility of a depicted future affect the user assessment of the visualized scenarios.

Upcycling C1 gas-derived resources in future food system

Upcycling the one-carbon (C1) gas-derived resources into food-related product offers a dual benefit, alleviating food shortages and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Powered by synthetic biology and cutting-edge technologies, the conversion of C1 resources into food-related products has become a reality. In this study, we present a state-of-the-art review for the synthesis of C1-based food-related products, broadly categorized as follows: (i) C1-to-carbohydates, (ii) C1-to-proteins, (iii) C1-to-lipids, (iv) C1-to-food additives, and (v) C1-to-food packaging. We assess the technological readiness level of each product category and identify the C1 fixation pathways and C1-based products with industrialization potential. We also address the bottlenecks and explore the opportunities within the less mature product categories. By revealing the existing knowledge gap, we emphasize the imperative of leveraging advanced technologies and collaborative efforts to address these challenges. Taken together, our work highlights the potential of upcycling C1 gas-derived resources in fostering future food system.

Technological Aspects of Bridging the Gap Between Cell-Based Food and Conventional Meat

Cell-based food, including cultured meat, introduces an innovative complement to our dietary options, introducing cellular agriculture and tissue engineering on the meat market together with traditional livestock farming. Originating from medical tissue cultivation techniques, this approach is now tailored for food production, prioritizing cost-effectiveness, palatability, and resource efficiency. As technology strives to efficiently upscale production, consumer acceptance stands as a key factor in adopting this new protein source. This review explores advances in cultivating muscle and fat tissues in vitro, emphasizing the importance of achieving muscle maturity, innovating scaffolds, and optimizing media composition to closely replicate the qualities of meat. It also addresses quality assessments of cultured meat based on its texture, nutritional content, and flavor. A concise examination of consumer perceptions reveals that acceptance is influenced by a blend of cultural, psychological, and social factors, balancing the positive potential outlook on cultured meat’s benefits for society, the environment, and animal welfare against concerns about its unnaturalness, uncertainty, and safety. Demographic trends suggest higher acceptance among younger, well-educated and urban individuals, contrasting with reservations from those more familiar with the traditional meat sector. Addressing these varied viewpoints is essential for a better understanding of public acceptance if cultured meat is effectively introduced into our future food systems. As media interest in this alternative is still high, aligning technological developments with consumer expectations is crucial for the potential market introduction of cultured meat.

Drivers of a more sustainable future food system – Lessons from Sweden

The global food sector is one of the most impactful sectors in the world, necessitating an urgent shift towards more sustainable practices. Sweden has made great progress in putting sustainability on the agenda as a strategic component of its national development strategy. Still, understanding how a full-scale sustainable food system can be achieved in practice and the drivers of such a transition remain unclear. In this study, we first empirically explore these drivers, their interdependencies and how these affect the Swedish food system's progress towards its sustainability objectives. Then, we assess which scenarios for the future food system in Sweden perform better with regard to sustainability considerations. For the first objective, we utilised the DEMATEL technique to identify and quantify the cause-and-effect relationships among these drivers. The results showed that revenue and the use of toxic materials are key drivers for food systems' sustainability in Sweden, suggesting a path for system improvement focus areas in the future. For the second objective, we applied TOPSIS as a decision-making method for assessing the sustainability of four different future scenarios for the Swedish food system. The outcomes suggest that food tech is the most sustainable scenario among the ones considered. The findings of this study will collectively aid in promoting sustainable consumption, encouraging a shift towards a more sustainable agrifood system in Sweden, a leading nation in sustainability efforts.

THE ECONOMIC PAMPHLETEER: Perspectives on past and future food systems

THE ECONOMIC PAMPHLETEER: Perspectives on past and future food systems

Urban food cultures. Towards an integrated approach of the urban food system

ABSTRACT This introduction to the thematic issue Urban Food Cultures: Towards an Integrative Approach to the Urban Food System is an invitation to further widen the perspective of urban food culture research. The understanding of urban food cultures should start from an integrated exploration of food practices in every part of the urban food system: from food production and processing to retail and consumption and to disposal, potential circular reuse, recycling to upcycling of food and its ingredients. Investigating the different aspects of the urban food system helps nuance the too self-evident town-country and local-global dichotomies often dominant in previous research. Interdisciplinary and integrated approaches to urban food systems may help bridge both knowledge gaps and offer relevant insights for many of the future challenges urban food systems face.

Harmonized European Union subnational crop statistics can reveal climate impacts and crop cultivation shifts

Abstract. The availability of coherent time series of crop statistics is essential for better analyzing the past, understanding the present, and predicting future trends in yield, area, and production. Importantly, such data also underpin assessments and subsequent policy actions that can shape future food systems that are more resilient in the face of climate change and that are sustainable in terms of resource use efficiency. In the European Union (EU), there currently is no legal obligation for EU countries to provide subnational crop statistics. However, such data could improve in-season crop forecasts, climate change impacts and adaption need assessments, and evaluation of agri-environmental schemes. The dataset described in this paper includes a harmonized collection of subnational crop statistics on area, production, and yield, collected for the EU from National Statistical Institutes (NSIs) and the EUROSTAT REGIO database – subnational crop statistics voluntarily contributed by EU countries. The crops considered are wheat (including soft and durum wheat), barley (including winter and spring barley), grain maize, sunflower, and sugar beet. All data are harmonized towards the hierarchical structure of the EUROSTAT legend and the regional classification of NUTS (Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics) version 2016, to provide coherent time series. A total of 344 282 records is presented here (115 974 for wheat, 122 705 for barley, 35 274 for grain maize, 34 916 for sugar beet, and 35 413 for sunflower) for a total of 961 regions in 27 EU countries. Statistics are reported from 1975 to 2020, with a median time-span range of 21 years. A flagging system details, for each data record, information on data sources, processing steps, and quality-checking results. This includes consistency checks between reported values for area, yield and production, identification of null values, missing and calculated data, information on crop legend matching, and NUTS versioning. We illustrate the value of this dataset by analyzing impacts on crops and production zone shifts in Europe due to climatic and economic factors. Recommendations and future developments of collecting subnational statistics at the EU level are briefly discussed. The dataset is accessible with European Commission Authentication Service (ECAS) login at https://doi.org/10.2905/685949ff-56de-4646-a8df-844b5bb5f835 (Ronchetti et al., 2023b).

Land-free bioenergy from circular agroecology—a diverse option space and trade-offs

Bioenergy from energy crops is a source of negative emissions and carbon-neutral fuels in many 1.5/2 ∘C IPCC pathways. This may compete with other land uses. In contrast, ancillary biomass like by-products and waste is not primarily grown for energy and thus without land/food/feed competition. Here, we examine the availability and environmental impacts of ancillary bioenergy from agricultural sources under 190 circular agroecological strategies using the global food-system model SOLm for the year 2050. We find that there is a diverse option space for the future food and energy system to meet both global warming targets (1.5 ∘C) and food system sustainability (medium to highly organic) – a similar range of ancillary bioenergy global potential (55–65 EJ)from very different food systems (50%–75% organic agriculture and various levels of waste and concentrate feeding reduction). We find three trade-offs between food system sustainability and ancillary bioenergy provision. First, there is a clear trade-off between nutrient recycling and negative emissions potential. 1.4–2.6 GTCO2eq of negative emissions supplied through ancillary bioenergy with carbon capture and storage comes at the cost of nutrient deficits and resulting incompatibility with even a medium degree of organic farming. Second, reducing feed from croplands increases the ancillary bioenergy production with low shares of organic agriculture and reduces it for high shares. Third, food waste reduction reduces ancillary bioenergy provision. Hence, the sustainable transformation of the food system towards a less animal-based diet and waste reduction may conflict with a higher ancillary bioenergy provision, especially when the organic share is high as well. The policy implication of our results is that ancillary bioenergy can provide a similar range of future bioenergy as foreseen in IPCC AR6 illustrative pathways (±10% ) without additional land use or compromising food availability. However, higher ancillary bioenergy provision or additional negative emissions compete with food system sustainability; hence, we recommend policymakers consider aligning energy system planning with the compatibility of sustainable food systems simultaneously.

From youth engagement to policy insights: Identifying and testing food systems’ sustainability indicators

Understanding how food systems could change and evolve in the future is essential for scientists and decision-makers across sectors to make informed policy decisions. For effective and salient policy, engaging citizens, especially young generations, who will experience those policies firsthand is crucial. This work aims to define and test new food systems sustainability indicators through youth engagement for policy insights to provide policymakers with literature incorporating citizens' needs. Our approach is based on Community Dissonance Theory and the application of a literature review, focus groups and survey. Four future food systems scenarios were obtained through the literature, serving as a baseline for discussion for Generation Z focus groups, whose results were analyzed through NVivo. In this work 31 food system indicators were identified, 20 on social aspects, 9 economic and one environmental. Social indicators proposed were related to capacity development, education, vulnerable groups, income inequality, social awareness, and increased stakeholders' engagement measures. Economic ones are on stakeholders' bargaining power and purchasing power, while environmental ones are on climate change. The combination of these scenarios contributed to identifying top priorities in terms of social, economic, and environmental indicators, which in terms of policy suggestions, could: balance economic, social, and environmental objectives within food systems; address potential impacts of policies beyond specific scenarios since they are inferred from a multitude of scenarios; reconcile short- and long-term priorities as areas of interventions within food supply chains; and engage young stakeholders to inform coherent policymaking.

Equity and resilience in local urban food systems: a case study

Local food systems can have economic and social benefits by providing income for producers and improving community connections. Ongoing global climate change and the acute COVID-19 pandemic crisis have shown the importance of building equity and resilience in local food systems. We interviewed ten stakeholders from organizations and institutions in a U.S. midwestern city exploring views on past, current, and future conditions to address the following two objectives: 1) Assess how local food system equity and resilience were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and 2) Examine how policy and behavior changes could support greater equity and resilience within urban local food systems. We used the Community Capitals Framework to organize interviewees’ responses for qualitative analyses of equity and resilience. Four types of community capital were emphasized by stakeholders: cultural and social, natural, and political capital. Participants stated that the local food system in this city is small; more weaknesses in food access, land access, and governance were described than were strengths in both pre- and post-pandemic conditions. Stakeholder responses also reflected lack of equity and resilience in the local food system, which was most pronounced for cultural and social, natural and political capitals. However, local producers’ resilience during the pandemic, which we categorized as human capital, was a notable strength. An improved future food system could incorporate changes in infrastructure (e.g., food processing), markets (e.g., values-based markets) and cultural values (e.g., valuing local food through connections between local producers and consumers). These insights could inform policy and enhance community initiatives and behavior changes to build more equitable and resilient local food systems in urban areas throughout the U.S. Midwest.

Agroecology integrates science, practice, movement, and future food systems

Agroecology is an interdisciplinary field that brings together agricultural practice and ecological principles. This article explores agroecology's theoretical foundations, practical applications, and historical evolution, along with its impact on modern agricultural methods. Agroecology looks at how biophysical and social elements combine to produce food sustainably, promote social justice, and protect the environment. The first section of the article looks at how agroecology developed as a scientific field, discussing its fundamental ideas, practices, and objectives- all of which emphasize participatory, adaptive, and holistic methodologies. The inquiry also looks into how agroecology might support biodiversity, resilience to climate change, and sustainable livelihoods. This article also explores the rise of agroecology as a movement driven by social activism, environmental consciousness, and a search for alternative food systems. After that, the article dives further into the history of agroecology, emphasizing the pioneers' contributions and the development of agroecological principles over time. The text goes on to outline the fundamental principles of agroecology. Its main objectives are enhancing resource efficiency, strengthening resilience, and ensuring social equality. This article discusses the practical applications of agroecology in various agricultural settings, such as permaculture, agroforestry, and agroecological farming systems. A few agro-ecology case studies have been described. Finally, the article highlights the future of food systems. The article concludes by highlighting the necessity of combining scientific understanding with indigenous ecological and cultural knowledge and stating that agro-ecology is viable for a more just and sustainable future for agriculture and food security.

The structure, dynamics, and vulnerability of the global food trade network

The global food trade network (FTN) plays a critical role in ensuring food security. Given the increasing scale and complexity of trade, understanding the inherent dynamics and potential vulnerabilities of FTN becomes an urgent concern. Here, this study employed complex network method to investigate the structure, dynamics, and vulnerabilities of the trade networks associated with four main food crops (rice, maize, wheat, and soybeans) over the period 2000 to 2019. Our results show that the FTN has features consistent with both scale-free and small-world networks. A small percentage of 10% of major food producing countries trade with a significant proportion of 80% of all countries within the network. In the examined period, FTN has experienced remarkable changes, emerging economies such as China, India, Brazil and Russia have become more important, offsetting the historical dominance of nations such as the United States, Canada and Australia. In addition, many countries become increasingly reliant on food imports, the number of their trading partners within the FTN is decreasing, highlights potential increasing vulnerabilities. Simulation analysis also show that disruptions affecting about 5% of nations could seriously destabilize the FTN, which would be a cautionary tale for the stability of future food systems. This research provides policymakers with a fundamental perspective on mitigating potential risks in global FTN.

Substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of Mahewu, a non‐alcoholic fermented cereal beverage

SummaryThere is growing interest in Sub‐Saharan Africa for substituting maize with climate‐smart crops like sorghum and millets in local food processing. We conducted a survey to explore current variations in processing and consumption practices for Mahewu, a traditionally fermented cereal beverage from Zimbabwe. Processing involved cooking a cereal porridge, adding cereal flour or malt as a starter ingredient, and fermenting for 12–48 h. Ingredient availability was the main driver for porridge ingredient choice (42% of respondents) with the most preferred being maize (55% of respondents), pearl millet (22%) and sorghum (9%). Final product taste had the most influence on starter ingredient choice, with most respondents preferring pearl millet flour (23%), finger millet malt (22%), wheat flour (17%), and sorghum malt (13%). Our study proves that maize can be replaced with sorghum and millet in Mahewu processing, thus increasing the climate‐resilience of future food systems, and demonstrates that traditional practices harbour clues for adapting current practices.

Positioning earthworms in the future foods debate: a systematic review of earthworm nutritional composition in comparison to edible insects

Abstract Sustainable food system innovations are urgently needed to feed a growing human population while staying within planetary boundaries. Farmed edible insects have received considerable scientific and public attention due to their potential to improve food system circularity by upcycling nutrients from organic residual streams to nutritious food. Earthworms, as non-insect invertebrates, have remained largely unrecognized in the future foods debate. However, they are already widely farmed at industrial scale for their capacity to recycle organic wastes and improve soil fertility. We conducted a systematic literature review to provide a quantitative basis on earthworm nutritional composition, thereby positioning earthworms in the future foods debate. Here we show, based on evidence from 142 scientific studies, that farmed earthworms are a potentially interesting food source. They have an attractive nutrient composition compared to the main farmed edible insect species, being especially rich in protein, low in fat and containing a favourable profile of essential amino acids. The content of important fatty acids, minerals and vitamins in earthworm biomass is higher or lower than in edible insects, depending on the feed material. Crude protein and fat contents are higher in farmed versus wild earthworms, indicating that farming conditions provide a lever for further improving the nutritional composition of earthworm biomass. Whether earthworm species or feed materials affect earthworm nutritional composition could not be finally clarified based on the available data. We conclude that earthworms have high potential as a future food from a nutritional perspective, mainly as an alternative source of protein. The integration of earthworm farming in future food systems can be expected to improve sustainability and circularity, potentially giving earthworms an advantage over edible insects.

Food Security and The Current Situation in Iraq

Food is the basis of human well-being. Increasing food production represents a basic and important strategy to alleviate global food insecurity. But despite the fact that world food production for the last century has remained ahead of demand. About a billion people around the world do not have enough to eat. Another billion people lack adequate nutrition. Food insecurity faces many pressures on both sides of supply and demand. The most important of these factors are housing growth, climate change, globalization, urbanization, and diseases. In addition to other factors that cause a change in food consumption patterns, many countries have resorted to approaches and policies to achieve food security for them. They have tired of the approach of production support, the liberalization of food trade, the policy of subsidizing consumption, in addition to the micronutrient supply program. And starting to understand food security from the perspective of shifting from the pillars to the tracks and addressing food security by encouraging growth in the agricultural sectors and increasing knowledge to implement the foundations of food security and to define foodborne diseases and the correct management of urban centers.Recently, international organizations have stressed the importance of sustainability to preserve natural and environmental resources and agricultural ecosystems, thus “achieving a comprehensive, food-secure and sustainable social system.” Considering food security and sustainability is an integral part, as today and in the future sustainable food systems will play a major role in maintaining nutritional well-being and health, in addition to sustaining food security in the future.

Impacts of colonization on Indigenous food systems in Canada and the United States: a scoping review

BackgroundIndigenous populations in Canada and the United States (US) have maintained reciprocal relationships with nature, grounded in respect for and stewardship of the environment; however, disconnection from traditional food systems has generated a plethora of physical and mental health challenges for communities. Indigenous food sovereignty including control of lands were found to be factors contributing to these concerns. Therefore, our aim was to conduct a scoping review of the peer-reviewed literature to describe Indigenous disconnection from Indigenous food systems (IFS) in Canada and the US.MethodsFollowing the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-SR) and Joanna Briggs Institute guidelines, we searched MEDLINE, SCOPUS, International Bibliography of the Social Sciences, Sociological s, and Bibliography of Native North Americans. Data was extracted from 41 studies and a narrative review completed based on study themes.ResultsThe overarching theme identified in the included studies was the impact of colonization on IFS. Four sub-themes emerged as causes for Indigenous disconnection from traditional food systems, including: climate change; capitalism; legal change; and socio-cultural change. These sub-themes highlight the multiple ways in which colonization has impacted Indigenous food systems in Canada and the US and important areas for transformation.ConclusionsEfforts to reconnect Indigenous knowledge and values systems with future food systems are essential for planetary health and sustainable development. Traditional knowledge sharing must foreground authentic Indigenous inclusion within policymaking.

Producing food utopia(s) at the UN Food Systems Summit: A thematic discourse analysis of Australia’s Summit Dialogues

Australia’s National Food Systems Summit Dialogues, held as part of the 2021 United Nations Food Systems Summit (UNFSS), are examined here as a case study exploring the production of utopian narratives within food systems governance. A large body of literature has critiqued the UNFSS on the basis of democratic governance and corporate capture, and some authors have also linked these critiques to the processes of knowledge production at the Summit. However, little research has examined these processes at a micro level, exploring the discursive means by which narratives about the food system are produced in multistakeholder governance contexts. Recognising the UNFSS as a site of struggle and contestation between various ‘utopian’ visions for the future food system, this article asks: What kind of food utopias were produced at the Dialogues, and how? Thematic discourse analysis of the Dialogues – focusing particularly on elements of critique, experimentation, and process – reveal two distinct food utopias, based on technologically-mediated sustainability and multistakeholder participation respectively. This analysis reveals the ways in which ‘utopian’ narratives about food and agriculture are discursively constructed according to ideological assumptions – and, as in this case, may end up reproducing the status quo food system rather than offering the possibility of transformative change.

Editorial:Ecological intensification and sustainable intensification: increasing benefits to and reducing impacts on the environment to improve future agricultural and food systems

Editorial:Ecological intensification and sustainable intensification: increasing benefits to and reducing impacts on the environment to improve future agricultural and food systems

Future of Food Computing: Deepening the Scope by Broadening the Network

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in using food data in various areas of computer science. Food, as a fundamental necessity for human sustenance, undergoes complex processes from farm to fork, involving physical, biological, intellectual and emotional dimensions. The need to ensure the effective and sustainable functioning of global food systems, while addressing human and environmental challenges, necessitates the development of food computing. But the question remains: How should food computing evolve to address fundamental issues in the food systems? While global sharing of data, information andknowledge is a way forward, we propose to increase the effectiveness of this sharing by transcending narrow disciplinary boundaries and engaging a wider range of stakeholders to address practical challengesfacing human society. We argue that food computing requires a multidisciplinary approach that is expansive in both scope and effectiveness. We envision a future where food computing serves as a comprehensive computational infrastructure for all aspects of food, including its production, consumption, and impact on individuals and the environment. The field of Food Computing is highly relevant to Digital Humanities (DH) researchers. By actively engaging in this area, DH researchers can make substantial contributions and shape the trajectory of future food systems, taking into account the intricate interplay of cultural, social and ethical complexities.

Approximating the global economic (market) value of farmed animals

Understanding the global economic importance of farmed animals to society is essential as a baseline for decision making about future food systems. We estimated the annual global economic (market) value of live animals and primary production outputs, e.g., meat, eggs, milk, from terrestrial and aquatic farmed animal systems. The results suggest that the total global market value of farmed animals ranges between 1.61 and 3.3 trillion USD (2018) and is expected to be similar in absolute terms to the market value of crop outputs (2.57 trillion USD). The cattle sector dominates the market value of farmed animals. The study highlights the need to consider other values of farmed animals to society, e.g., finance/insurance value and cultural value, in decisions about the sector’s future.