Novice gardeners in community gardens do not always change their behaviour

green apple beside of two clear glass jars

Photo by Toni Cuenca on Pexels.com In the latest So What? Series of the UNESCO Chair in World Food System, Marion Tharrey and Nicole Darmon sum up key findings from the JArDinS study, conducted in the Greater Montpellier area (France). They show that there is no obvious link between starting to participate in a community …

De nouvelles estimations du gaspillage alimentaire qui revoient les chiffres à la hausse

fruits in a plastic bag

Le Centre d'Etudes et de Prospective du Ministère de l'Agriculture revient sur le premier rapport du PNUE sur le gaspillage alimentaire à l'échelle mondiale. Près de 18% de la production alimentaire mondiale serait gaspillée, soit deux fois plus qu'estimé auparavant. http://veilleagri.hautetfort.com/archive/2021/04/19/premier-rapport-mondial-sur-le-gaspillage-alimentaire-par-le-6310729.html Photo by Anna Shvets on Pexels.com

New study in Chicago shows urban agriculture can support food systems but is no panacea for local food insecurity

green and brown metal tool

A team of researchers estimated how much of the food demand of Chicago could be met by maximizing urban agriculture, and how much adjacent land would be required to produce the rest.  Models suggest that, under current urban agricultural production conditions, meeting the nutritional needs of Chicago inhabitants remains unfeasible within a radius under 400 …

Urban home gardens are amazing nectar pantries for pollinating insects, University of Bristol study finds

Through an innovative methodology, the research project compared urban and rural nectar production, and identified concentrations thereof in city contexts. Findings show that domestic and public gardens harbor 85% of sustenance for pollinators in urban areas, otherwise largely inhospitable to them. The study thereby underlines the significant role urban dwellers/gardeners may play in supporting pollinators, …

What about better connecting policies to improve impacts?

The Food Research Collaboration think tank recently published a report called "How Connected is national food policy in England?" that explores how policy areas could be better connected to improve the sustainability of the food system. Dr Kelly Parsons presents in a blog post their research and other recent analysis from other organisations such as …

Le point sur l’artificialisation des sols en France

drone shot of resort in a city

Le magazine Challenges a interrogé des chercheurs sur le phénomène de l'artificialisation des sols et fournit un rapide tour d'horizon de la question : https://www.challenges.fr/green-economie/artificialisation-des-sols-quatre-questions-pour-comprendre-ce-phenomene-preoccupant_750650 Pour en savoir plus sur la dynamique d'artificialisation des sols à l'échelle mondiale, consultez notre article sur la question, ainsi que les pistes de recherche pour la protection des terres …

Quelle place de l’assiette dans les politiques publiques?

flat lay photography of vegetable salad on plate

Dans le cadre de l’université Afterres organisée début février 2021, plusieurs chercheurs et praticiens reviennent sur le lien entre l'assiette alimentaire (nature des produits consommés, liens avec la santé, liens avec les systèmes de production) et le rôle des politiques publiques pour favoriser la transition alimentaire. La présence timide de l'assiette dans les politiques publiques …

Consolidation of the US food system by corporate players is driving price increases and food inaccessibility

Consolidation has placed key decisions about the US food system in the hands of a few large companies, giving them considerable influence to lobby policymakers and influence media coverage. Industry consolidation is hard to track. Many subsidiary firms are often controlled by one parent corporation and engage in “contract packing,” in which a single processing …

Agriculture de proximité : les villes doivent prêter attention aux points de livraison

person giving fruit to another

Une étude qualitative menée par l'Université de Québec à Montréal met en lumière la forte mais fragile progression de l'agriculture de proximité à Montréal. Pour que cette accélération se maintienne dans le temps, l'étude recommande que les villes s'impliquent dans l'aménagement des points de rencontre entre producteurs et consommateurs citadins.  https://theconversation.com/du-fermier-au-citadin-la-pandemie-accelere-lagriculture-soutenue-par-la-communaute-153607

CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute identifies paths for progress in NYC food policy evaluation

In January, the NYC mayor office for Food Policy released the 2020 Food Metrics Report. The document provides an overview of city food programs, and lays out how they have adapted to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the food system. The CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute articulated thoughts on how to make the …