Food system resilience: Defining the concept

Dynamic impacts of public health events on price fluctuations in broiler industry Chain in China: Evidence from COVID-19 epidemic

Using weekly data from January 2020 to December 2021 on the prices of various links in the Chinese broiler industry chain and the COVID-19 epidemic, we employed a time-varying parametric vector auto-regressive (TVP-VAR) model to investigate the dynamic effects of public health events on price fluctuations of upstream, midstream, and downstream products in the Chinese broiler industry chain. Our findings showed that the COVID-19 epidemic had different effects on the prices of various broiler products, both in direction and magnitude, at different lags and time intervals. Chicken and live chicken prices were impacted the most, followed by broiler chick prices, while broiler feed prices were impacted the least. The epidemic constantly impacted broiler chick and chicken prices, while its effect on live chicken prices was initially negative but turned positive afterwards. Additionally, the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on broiler product prices consistently increased with more extended lag periods. The impulse responses at different epidemic time points were heterogeneous. With the results of this study, policy recommendations can be suggested to relevant government departments to optimize the prevention and control measures for public health emergencies and ensure price stability in the broiler industry.

Unveiling Digital Transformation: A Catalyst for Enhancing Food Security and Achieving Sustainable Development Goals at the European Union Level

The digital revolution is reshaping various aspects of society, including having a profound impact on food security and the advancement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This study investigates the relationship between digital transformation, quantified through the components of the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI), and SDGs related to food (SDG1, SDG2, SDG3, and SDG10), along with the overall SDG Index score. The data used for investigation are sourced from reports issued by the European Commission concerning DESI, as well as the SDG reports for the period from 2017 to 2022. The paper elucidates how different components of digitalization, such as connectivity, digital skills, internet usage, and digital public services, influence the attainment of food security objectives and broader sustainable development targets using structural equation modeling and cluster analysis. The findings underscore the pivotal role of digital technologies in enhancing poverty alleviation, health and well-being, and, in particular, mitigating inequality. This study contributes to understanding the complex relationship between digital transformation and food security, offering insights for policymakers, practitioners, and stakeholders aiming to leverage technology for advancing SDGs and fostering a more equitable and sustainable future.

How resilient are farmers in Africa to climate shocks? A case study of Nigerian farmers

Agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa remains highly vulnerable to climate related shocks, since most production relies on rainfall. It is important to accurately measure the resilience of farmers and farming communities to weather variabilities, for both government policy and farmer management responses. This paper develops a Resilience Index Framework, which is further used to assess the resilience of farmers to climate shocks in Nigeria. We conceptualized our Resilience Index (RI) in this study to be a composite function of 60 indicators encompassing four resilience domains namely, Economic & Financial Resilience (ER); Technical-know-how Resilience (TR); Social Resilience (SR); and Physical Resilience (PR). A three-stage standardization approach to construct the resilience index is taken in this study. In the first stage, each indicator is standardized. In the second stage, the resilience domain is computed by averaging the corresponding standardized indicators. In the final stage, the composite RI is computed by estimating the weighted average of all the resilience domains. The study uses the baseline survey data collected between 2021 and 2022 from a total of 5954 farmers in the rainforest, derived and guinea savannah agroecological zones of Nigeria. The result of the study shows that the majority (96.5%) of the farmers are less resilient to climate shocks, with only 0.9% economically & financially resilient, 1.4% socially resilient, 31.4% technically resilient, and 18.5% physically resilient. Finally, some recommend steps to be taken by the government and relevant stakeholders to improve the resilience of farmers through provision of good infrastructural facilities and subsidized improved resistant seed varieties are proposed.

The spatial and source heterogeneity of agricultural emissions highlight necessity of tailored regional mitigation strategies

Agriculture contributes considerable greenhouse gas emissions while feed the constantly expanding world population. The challenge of balancing food security with emissions reduction to create a mutually beneficial situation is paramount. However, assessing targeted mitigation potential for agricultural emissions remains challenging, lacking comprehensive sub-national evaluations. Here, we have meticulously compiled the agricultural greenhouse gas emission inventories of China spanning the years 2000 to 2019, employing spatial analysis techniques to identify regional characteristics. We find that the peak of China's agricultural production emissions occurred in 2015 (1.03 × 109 tCO2 equivalent), followed by a valley in 2019 (0.94 tCO2 equivalent), largely attributed to shifts in livestock-related activities. Notably, methane emissions were the most dominant greenhouse gas, the Hunan province emerged as a prominent contributor, livestock raising stood out as a major activity, and enteric fermentation ranked as the primary emission source. There were substantial differences in the emission structure and sources among the provinces. Further spatial analysis showed geographical disparities in both total emissions and per capita emissions. The west-east blocked spatial characteristics of per capita emissions at the Hu Line sides emerged. We advocate that tailored mitigation strategy focusing on specific emission sources and regions can achieve substantial progress with minimal effort.

A comparative national-level analysis of government food system resilience activities across four developed countries at varying stages of planning

BACKGROUND

The COVID-19 pandemic, extreme weather events, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine have highlighted global food system vulnerabilities and a lack of preparedness and prospective planning for increasingly complex disruptions. This has spurred an interest in food system resilience. Despite the elevated interest in food system resilience, there is a lack of comparative analyses of national-level food system resilience efforts. An improved understanding of the food system resilience landscape can support and inform future policies, programs, and planning.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-country comparison of national-level food system resilience activities from Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, Sweden, and the United States. We developed upon and adapted the resilience framework proposed by Harris and Spiegel to compare actions derived from thirteen national food system resilience documents. We coded the documents based on the actions taken by the governments including: the food system resilience attributes utilized, the part of the food supply chain, the specific shocks or stressors, the implementation level, the temporal focus of action, and the expected impact on food security. We analyzed and compared countries' coded categories and subcategories, and category combinations.

RESULTS

The results showed that these countries are addressing some of the same issues, are using multi-pronged policy actions to address food system resilience issues, and are focused on both retrospective reviews and prospective models of disruptive events to inform their decisions. Some work has been done towards preparing for climate change and other natural disasters, and less preparing has been done for other shocks or stressors.

CONCLUSIONS

This paper develops and applies a framework rooted in literature to understand the content of national-level food system resilience documents. The analysis identified potential gaps, concentrations, and themes in national food systems resilience. The framework can be applied to augment existing policy, create new policy, as well as to supplement and complement other existing frameworks.

Consistency of dry matter intake in Holstein cows: Heritability estimates and associations with feed efficiency

Resilience can be defined as the capacity to maintain performance or bounce back to normal functioning after a perturbation, and studying fluctuations in daily feed intake may be an effective way to identify resilient dairy cows. Our goal was to develop new phenotypes based on daily dry matter intake (DMI) consistency in Holstein cows, estimate genetic parameters and genetic correlations with feed efficiency and milk yield consistency, and evaluate their relationships with production, longevity, health, and reproduction traits. Data consisted of 397,334 daily DMI records of 6,238 lactating Holstein cows collected from 2007 to 2022 at 6 research stations across the United States. Consistency phenotypes were calculated based on the deviations from expected daily DMI for individual cows during their respective feeding trials, which ranged from 27 to 151 d in duration. Expected values were derived from different models, including simple average, quadratic and cubic quantile regression with a 0.5 quantile, and locally estimated scatterplot smoothing (LOESS) regression with span parameters 0.5 and 0.7. We then calculated the log of variance (log-Var-DMI) of daily deviations for each model as the consistency phenotype. Consistency of milk yield was also calculated, as a reference, using the same methods (log-Var-Milk). Genetic parameters were estimated using an animal model, including lactation, days in milk and cohort as fixed effects, and animal as random effect. Relationships between log-Var-DMI and traits currently considered in the US national genetic evaluation were evaluated using Spearman's rank correlations between sires' breeding values. Heritability estimates for log-Var-DMI ranged from 0.11 ± 0.02 to 0.14 ± 0.02 across models. Different methods (simple average, quantile regressions, and LOESS regressions) used to calculate log-Var-DMI yielded very similar results, with genetic correlations ranging from 0.94 to 0.99. Estimated genetic correlations between log-Var-DMI and log-Var-Milk ranged from 0.51 to 0.62. Estimated genetic correlations between log-Var-DMI and feed efficiency ranged from 0.55 to 0.60 with secreted milk energy, from 0.59 to 0.63 with metabolic body weight, and from 0.26 to 0.31 with residual feed intake (RFI). Relationships between log-Var-DMI and the traits in the national genetic evaluation were moderate and positive correlations with milk yield (0.20 to 0.21), moderate and negative correlations with female fertility (-0.07 to -0.20), no significant correlations with health and longevity, and favorable correlations with feed efficiency (-0.23 to -0.25 with feed saved and 0.21 to 0.26 with RFI). We concluded that DMI consistency is heritable and may be an indicator of resilience. Cows with lower variation in the difference between actual and expected daily DMI (more consistency) may be more effective in maintaining performance in the face of challenges or perturbations, whereas cows with greater variation in observed versus expected daily DMI (less consistency) are less feed efficient and may be less resilient.

Assessing Leadership Capacity in the Food System: The Issue Leadership Scale

The food system represents a complex, interrelated, and interdependent network of individuals and organizations. Despite the unique characteristics of the food system domain, there has never been a comprehensive analysis of leadership capacity amongst food system professionals. The present study provides an empirical assessment of food system leadership capacity using many leadership instruments. The study included pilot (n = 125) and primary (n = 4185) data collection across 27 food system-related leadership development programs. The results validate the Issue Leadership scale, which comprises seven capacity areas: action, change, communication, critical thinking, strategic planning and visioning, interpersonal traits and characteristics, leadership process, and leadership skills. The Issue Leadership scale captures both perception of importance and current skill level. The study results indicate that food system professionals perceived communication and critical thinking, strategic planning and visioning as the most important leadership capacity areas. Furthermore, respondents indicated the highest level of self-perceived skill in critical thinking, strategic planning and visioning, and interpersonal traits and characteristics. Overall, respondents had higher perceived importance levels (m = 4.17) than skill (m = 3.44), indicating the need for additional leadership capacity development amongst food system professionals. Respondents also indicated similar levels of opinion leadership (m = 3.92), servant leadership (m = 3.82), transformational leadership (m = 3.78), and transactional leadership (m = 3.70), providing an additional empirical assessment of food system professional leadership capacity.

CO-Creation and Evaluation of Food Environments to Advance Community Health (COACH)

Introduction

Food environments are a key determinant of food intake and diet-related health. This paper describes the development of an iterative, adaptive, context-specific framework for health-enabling food environments embedded in cocreation theory.

Methods

A 3-stage multimethod framework for the coproduction and prototyping of public health interventions was followed in an iterative manner during the development of the framework. These 3 stages were (1) evidence review, including systematic review, consultation with experts, and observation of current work; (2) codesign of the framework prototype with multiple stakeholders; and (3) coproduction through refinement of the prototype through stakeholder workshops and expert reviews with incorporation of researcher notes and workshop evaluation. We use the term prototype during the development phase and the term framework to report on the final product.

Results

COACH (CO-creation and evaluation of food environments to Advance Community Health) is a process framework that describes what best practice application of cocreation in health-enabling food retail environments should involve. COACH consists of 10 interdependent factors within a 4-phase continuous quality improvement cycle. The 4 phases of the cycle are engagement and governance establishment, communication and policy alignment, codesign and implementation, and monitoring and evaluation.

Conclusions

Utilizing cocreation theory represents an innovative step in research and practice to improve the healthiness of food retail environments. COACH provides a specific, unique, and comprehensive guide to the utilization of cocreation to improve the healthiness of food environments in practice.

Processed foods: From their emergence to resilient technologies

Humans need food processing assuring food safety, quality, and functionality to sustain their life. The ongoing debates regarding food processing require rational and scientific data about food processing and processed foods. This study deals with the importance, origins, and history of processing, defining processes and discussing existing food classification systems and provides recommendations for future food process development. Descriptions and comparisons of technologies for food preservation, their resource efficiency, and beneficial aspects in relation to traditional processing are summarized. Possibilities for pretreatments or combination application and related potentials are provided. A consumer-oriented paradigm change is presented using the potential of resilient technologies for food product improvements rather than the traditional adaptation of raw materials to existing processes. Means for food science and technology research toward dietary changes by transparent, gentle, and resource-efficient processes for consumers food preference, acceptance, and needs are provided.

Food Insecurity: Is Leagility a Potential Remedy?

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, and Ukraine-Russian conflict, both significant geo-political and socio-economic shocks to the global food system and food insecurity has risen across the world. One potential remedy to reduce the level of food insecurity is to move from a lean just-in-time food system to one where there is more resilience through greater agility both in routine supply operations and also in the event of an emergency situation. The aim of this critical perspectives paper was to firstly reflect on the concepts of lean, agility, and 'leagility'. Then, this study considered the ability of individual organisations and the whole food system to be resilient, adaptive, enable the elimination of waste, reduce inefficiency, and assure the consistent delivery to market requirements in terms of both volume, safety, and quality. Promoting the concept of leagility together with advocating resilient, sustainable practices that embed buffer and adaptive capacity, this paper positions that increasing digitalisation and improving business continuity planning can ensure effective operationalisation of supply chains under both normal and crisis situations, ultimately reducing the risk of food insecurity at personal, household, and community levels.

Does food biodiversity protect against malnutrition and favour the resilience to climate change-related events in Amazon Indigenous communities? A protocol for a mixed methods study

Background : Undernutrition is projected to be a major consequence of climate change. Biodiversity could enhance climate change resilience by improving nutritional outcomes and providing healthy food resources during and/or after climate-related events. For Indigenous populations who currently base their diet on local biodiversity, rapid climate changes may affect their ability to produce, access or gather food and consequently impact their nutritional status. There is a knowledge gap regarding whether nutritional status among Indigenous populations is better among those who consume a diet with greater biodiversity than those who have a diet with low biodiversity. Objective : This study aims to investigate the role of food biodiversity (FBD) in nutritional resilience to extreme flooding events of Shawi Amazon Indigenous adults living in Peruvian communities that have experienced extreme floods in the past five years. Methods : This study will use a mixed-method sequential explanatory design. The quantitative component includes a cross-sectional survey to assess the association between food biodiversity (FBD) and the prevalence of anaemia in adults aged 15 to 60 years old (n=365). Anaemia will be evaluated using blood hemoglobin and serum ferritin. FBD will be measured with a food frequency questionnaire and a 24-hour dietary recall. Soil-transmitted helminth infections, malaria, and inflammatory biomarkers will also be evaluated. The qualitative component will include a community-based participatory approach to investigate the role of FBD in the responses to extreme floods. Male (n=14) and female (n=14) participants, previously identified in the quantitative phase with high and low levels of FBD, will be invited to participate in a Photovoice activity and semi-structured interviews. A analytical framework for climate change resilience will be used to integrate the data. Discussion : Findings will be integrated to identify nutritional resilience indicators that can inform adaptative interventions to changing climatic conditions in the Amazon and that respect Indigenous worldviews.

Does climate-smart agriculture improve household income and food security? Evidence from Southern Ethiopia

Climate change threatens African countries' economic development and affects agriculture and food security. Ethiopia is especially vulnerable to the negative effects of climate change because its economy is dependent on climate-sensitive livelihoods that have limited potential for adaptation. Emerging evidence indicates that climate-smart agriculture (CSA) can help smallholder farmers adapt to climate change and increase agricultural productivity, thereby enhancing household income and food security. In the study area, different CSA practices have been adopted to mitigate the negative effects of climate change and improve agricultural productivity, income, and food security. Therefore, this study examines the impact of CSA practices on household income and food security in southern Ethiopia. A total of 385 households were selected using multistage sampling. Primary and secondary data were used, and propensity score matching with different types of matching algorithms, such as nearest neighbor, kernel, and radius matching, was employed to quantify the conditional impacts of CSA intervention on farm income and food security. In comparison with non adopters farmers that have adopted CSA practices had a higher food consumption score between 6.27 and 8.15, which was statistically significant at the 1% level. Overall, 34.55% of interviewed households had acceptable food consumption scores, 44.68% had borderline, and 20.77% had poor food consumption scores. Furthermore, households that adopted CSA practices had a 20.30% higher average annual farm income per hectare than non-adopters. The study suggests that effective extension services, accurate climate information, and sound policy support are required to promote and scale up CSA measures in the study area to improve farmers' adaptive capacity, farm income, and food security.

Enhancing resilience through seed system plurality and diversity: challenges and barriers to seed sourcing during (and in spite of) a global pandemic

The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have rippled across the United States' (US) agri-food system, illuminating considerable issues. US seed systems, which form the foundation of food production, were particularly marked by panic-buying and heightened safety precautions in seed fulfillment facilities which precipitated a commercial seed sector overwhelmed and unprepared to meet consumer demand for seed, especially for non-commercial growers. In response, prominent scholars have emphasized the need to support both formal (commercial) and informal (farmer- and gardener-managed) seed systems to holistically aid growers across various contexts. However, limited attention to non-commercial seed systems in the US, coupled with a lack of consensus surrounding what exactly a resilient seed system looks like, first warrants an exploration into the strengths and vulnerabilities of existing seed systems. This paper seeks to examine how growers navigated challenges in seed sourcing and how this may reflect the resilience of the seed systems to which they belong. Using a mixed-methods approach which includes data from online surveys (n = 158) and semi-structured interviews (n = 31) with farmers and gardeners in Vermont, findings suggest that growers were able to adapt - albeit through different mechanisms depending on their positionality (commercial or non-commercial) within the agri-food system. However, systemic challenges emerged including a lack of access to diverse, locally adapted, and organic seeds. Insights from this study illuminate the importance of creating linkages between formal and informal seed systems in the US to help growers respond to manifold challenges, as well as promote a robust and sustainable stock of planting material.

The resilience and viability of farmers markets in the United States as an alternative food network: case studies from Michigan during the COVID-19 pandemic

This paper examines the resilience of farmers markets in Michigan to the system shock of the global COVID-19 pandemic, questioning how the response fits into market goals of food sovereignty. Adapting to shifting public health recommendations and uncertainty, managers implemented new policies to create a safe shopping experience and expand food access. As consumers directed their shopping to farmers markets looking for safer outdoor shopping, local products, and foods in short supply at grocery stores, market sales skyrocketed with vendors reporting selling more than ever before, but the longevity of this change remains unclear. Our data collected via semi-structured interviews with market managers and vendors, and survey data from customers from 2020 to 21, suggest that despite the widespread impact of COVID-19, there is not sufficient evidence consumers will continue to shop at farmers markets at the rates they did in 2020-21. Furthermore, reasons consumers flocked to farmers markets do not align with market priorities for increased food sovereignty, as increased sales alone are not a sufficient driver for this goal. We question how markets can contribute to broader sustainability goals or serve as alternatives to capitalist and industrial modes of agricultural production, problematizing the role of markets in the food sovereignty movement.

Synergies and trade-offs in drought resilience within a multi-level UK food supply chain

Weather extremes are the biggest challenge for supply chains worldwide, with food supply chains particularly exposed due to agriculture's sensitivity to weather conditions. Whilst attention has been paid to farm-level impacts from, and adaptation to, weather extremes, there remains a need to better understand how different actors along the supply chain suffer, react and adapt to these natural hazards and how their resilience-building strategies affect other actors' and the whole system's resilience. Taking the UK potato supply chain as a case study, this paper analyses the synergies and trade-offs in drought resilience in a multi-level food supply chain. Data from an online survey (87) and interviews with key informants (27) representing potato supply-chain actors (growers, packers, processors, retailers) were used to analyse drought risk perceptions, impacts and coping strategies, long-term resilience measures and further actions to build system resilience. Results suggest that the potato supply chain has increased its resilience to weather extremes due to retailers and packers having a wider geographical spread of supply, an increasing reliance on forward contracts and favouring growers with water security. However, a conceptual framework of resilience-building strategies adopted by supply chain actors shows that these measures are largely designed to reduce their own risk without considering implications for other parts of the chain and the system as a whole. A more integrated approach to promote drought resilience in complex food supply chains that enables improved vertical collaboration and trust between actors is therefore needed.

Participatory diagnosis of food systems fragility; perspectives from Thailand

Much of the effort toward building resilience has been directed at identifying appropriate metrics and indicators of system resilience, and from this, interventions to strengthen resilience. An essential ingredient of such resilience-building efforts is to apply public processes of dialogue and diagnosis to identify systems fragility and potential for failure. Social learning processes allow people to take new perspectives in understanding their own and other's interests and values, to identify problems and formulate solutions by focusing on the potential for systemic failure. Diagnosis and dialogue tools used in a participatory process in Northern Thailand included food systems mapping, identifying potential points of failure within systems, and applying a self-assessment tool structured around resilience characteristics. This process proved important for developing stakeholder understanding of systems thinking and of concepts of resilience. Yet it is a process that is not without challenges. We noted the difficulty with defining food system boundaries and the tendency for participants to persist with familiar understandings of problems within their sector, with it taking time to shift to thinking about points of fragility within the whole system. We particularly recognize the participatory process itself as being of value, in addition to the specific outcomes such as risk identification or interventions for resilience.

Setting-up place-based and transdisciplinary research to foster agrifood system transformation: Insights from the Aliment'Actions project in western France

Many agrifood systems around the world can be characterized as unsustainable. Research is increasingly required to inform the necessary radical transformations of the ways we produce, process, transport, and consume food. This article presents the research approach and methods of an ongoing project carried out at a long-term social–ecological research site, the Zone Atelier Plaine and Val de Sèvre (western France). The research project presented here, Aliment'Actions, started in 2018 and within 10 years of its implementation seeks to study and trigger transformation to enhance the sustainability and resilience of the regional agrifood system. Its research agenda contains four types of actions: (a) backdrop actions that enhance communication and trust between researchers and local stakeholders, (b) targeted actions that are conducted in specific villages with a wide range of stakeholders to elaborate and implement various transformation levers, (c) assessment actions evaluating the effects of different interventions, and (d) communication and result from dissemination actions. Overall, these actions aim to co-produce knowledge, raise awareness regarding challenges in the food system, envision new interactions between stakeholders, collectively generate innovative ideas, and catalyze actions oriented toward agrifood system transformation. The project implementation is adaptive and iterative, from theory to practice. This Methods paper puts this ongoing project into the perspective of other place-based research initiatives and provides insights on how to foster the engagement of non-academic actors in transdisciplinary research supporting agrifood system transformation.

Impacts of COVID-19 on US agri-food supply chain businesses: Regional survey results

Visible disruptions of appropriate food distribution for end consumers during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic prompted calls for an urgent, renewed look at how the U.S. agri-food system is impacted by and responds to pandemics, natural disasters, and human-made crises. Previous studies suggest the COVID-19 pandemic yielded uneven impacts across agri-food supply chain segments and regions. For a rigorously comparable assessment of the impact of COVID-19 on agri-food businesses, a survey was administered from February to April 2021 to five segments of the agri-food supply chain in three study regions (California, Florida, and the two-state region of Minnesota-Wisconsin). Results (N = 870) measuring the self-reported changes in quarterly business revenue in 2020 compared to businesses' typical experience pre-COVID-19 suggest significant differences across supply chain segments and regions. In the Minnesota-Wisconsin region, restaurants took the largest hit and the upstream supply chains were relatively unaffected. In California, however, the negative impacts were felt throughout the supply chain. Two factors likely contributed to regional differences: (1) regional disparities in pandemic evolution and governance and (2) structural differences in regional agri-food systems. Regionalized and localized planning and the development of best-practices will be necessary for the U.S. agri-food system to enhance preparedness for and resilience to future pandemics, natural disasters, and human-made crises.

The "Vertigo" of the Food Sector within the Triangle of Climate Change, the Post-Pandemic World, and the Russian-Ukrainian War

Over the last few years, the world has been facing dramatic changes due to a condensed period of multiple crises, including climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russian-Ukrainian war. Although different, these consecutive crises share common characteristics (e.g., systemic shocks and non-stationary nature) and impacts (e.g., disruption of markets and supply chains), questioning food safety, security, and sustainability. The current article analyses the effects of the noted crises in the food sector before proposing target mitigation measures to address the different challenges. The goal is to transform the food systems to increase their resilience and sustainability. This goal can only be achieved if all relevant actors within the supply chain (e.g., governments, companies, distributors, farmers, etc.) play their role by designing and implementing target interventions and policies. In addition, the transformation of the food sector should be proactive concerning food safety, circular (valorizing several bioresources under the principles of climate neutral economy and blue bioeconomy), digital (based on Industry 4.0 applications), and inclusive (ensuring that all citizens are actively engaged). Food production modernization (e.g., by implementing emerging technologies) and developing shorter and more domestic supply chains are also critical to achieving food resilience and security.

Urban agriculture in walkable neighborhoods bore fruit for health and food system resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic

Urban agriculture is the key to creating healthy cities and developing resilient urban food systems in uncertain times. However, relevant empirical evidence is limited. This study quantitatively verified the association of access to local food through urban agriculture with subjective well-being, physical activity, and food security concerns of neighborhood communities in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The target was Tokyo, Japan, where small-scale local food systems are widespread in walkable neighborhoods. We found that diversity in local food access, ranging from self-cultivation to direct-to-consumer sales, was significantly associated with health and food security variables. In particular, the use of allotment farms was more strongly associated with subjective well-being than the use of urban parks, and it was more strongly associated with the mitigation of food security concerns than the use of food retailers. These findings provide robust evidence for the effectiveness of integrating urban agriculture into walkable neighborhoods.

How do food supply chain performance measures contribute to sustainable corporate performance during disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic emergency?

Purpose

This study aims to the development of the scale of supply chain performance measures (SCPMs), food supply chain resilience (FSCS) and sustainable corporate performance (SCP) in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in an emerging market. Based on this purpose, the study examines the relationships between SCPMs and SCP by exploring the mediating role of FSCS in emerging markets.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on a comprehensive literature review on the SCPMs, FSCS and SCP, the author evaluates the nexus of these constructs on disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic emergency in an emerging market. The article follows a quantitative approach. A total of 567 valid responses from managers at senior and middle levels were received and used for data analysis. The Smart PLS version 3.3.2 was employed to analyse Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) to investigate the relationships between constructs and latent variables.

Findings

This study provides some theoretical contributions to expand the extant literature on the domain of SCPMs. First, the findings determine that multidimensional measures of flexibility, diversity, agility, inventory efficiency, redundancy and robustness are appropriate for measuring food SC performance in disruptions during the COVID-19 emergency. Besides, this study enriches the existing literature on SC disruption by providing extensive empirical evidence on SCPMs in disruptions during the COVID-19 emergency. Finally, this research provides an integrated empirical model that explores the link between the identified food SCPMs to FSCS and SCP.

Originality/value

The contributions may be of interest to business practitioners, business leaders and academics. In addition, this study provides empirical evidence to demonstrate that food SC performance, as measured by these measures, is strongly related to the firm's food supply chain resilience. This is the novel contribution of this study to the current literature on food SC management. Furthermore, this study provides further empirical evidence demonstrating the partial mediating role of the firm's food supply chain resilience in the nexus between food SC performance and SCP. The unique contribution of this study is an extension of the body of knowledge of SC management literature from a comprehensive approach by providing a proven set of performance measures of SC management to which it can drive SC resilience and SCP for food manufacturing SMEs in an emerging economy that hardly found in the current literature.

The elements of resilience in the food system and means to enhance the stability of the food supply

Food systems are increasingly exposed to disruptions and shocks, and they are projected to increase in the future. Most recently, the war in Ukraine and Covid-19 pandemic has increased concerns about the ability to secure the availability of food at stable prices. This article presents a food system resilience framework to promote a national foresight system to better prepare for shocks and disruptions. Our study identified four key elements of resilience: system thinking through science and communication; redundancy of activities and networks; diversity of production and partners; and buffering strategies. Three national means to enhance resilience in the Finnish food system included domestic protein crop production, renewable energy production, and job creation measures. Primary production was perceived as the cornerstone for food system resilience, and the shocks and disruptions that it confronts therefore call for a sufficient and diverse domestic production volume, supported by the available domestic renewable energy. A dialogue between different actors in the food system was highlighted to format a situational picture and enable a rapid response. Our study suggests that to a certain point, concentration and interdependence in the food system increase dialogue and cooperation. For critical resources, sufficient reserve stocks buffer disruptions over a short period in the event of unexpected production or market disruptions. Introducing and strengthening the identified resilience elements and means to the food system call for the preparation of a more holistic and coherent food system policy that acknowledges and emphasises resilience alongside efficiency.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10669-022-09889-5.

A hybrid optimization method to design a sustainable resilient supply chain in a perishable food industry

To integrate the location, inventory, and routing (LIR) problems arising in designing a resilient sustainable perishable food supply network (RSPFSN), a bi-objective optimization model is developed. To improve the resiliency and sustainability of the RSPFSN, a dynamic pricing strategy is used to cope with the disrupting events, along with minimizing the total cost and CO₂ emission of the whole network. One of the important features of the proposed model is taking into account the effects of route disruptions and traffic conditions on the deterioration of products. To solve the mixed-integer nonlinear bi-objective optimization model, a novel hybrid method is developed using the Heuristic Multi-Choice Goal Programming and Utility Function Genetics Algorithm (HMCGP-UFGA). To improve resiliency, the dynamic pricing strategy, considering the traffic condition, can lead to around a 20% improvement in both cost and CO₂ emission, based on the results of our case study in a dairy supply chain. Besides, the results of sensitivity analysis display the high flexibility of the proposed approach for various problems.

Resilience assessment of centralized and distributed food systems

Resilience, defined as the ability of a system to adapt in the presence of a disruptive event, has been of great interest with food systems for some time now. The goal of this research was to build understanding about resilient food systems that will withstand and recover from disruptions in a way that ensures a sufficient supply of food for all. In large, developed countries such as the USA and Canada, the food supply chain relies on a complex web of interconnected systems, such as water and energy systems, and food production and distribution are still very labor-intensive. Thanks to economies of scale and effective use of limited resources, potential cost savings support a push towards a more centralized system. However, distributed systems tend to be more resilient. Although distributed production systems may not be economically justifiable than centralized ones, they may provide a more resilient alternative. This study focused on the supply-side aspects of the food system and the food system's water, energy, and workforce disruptions to be considered for the resilience assessment for the USA, with an example for the state of Texas. After the degree of centralization (DoC) was calculated, the resilience of a food system was measured. Next, the relationship between labor intensity and production of six major food groups was formulated. The example for Texas showed that the decentralization of food systems will improve their resilience in responding to energy and water disruptions. A 40 percent reduction in water supply could decrease the food system performance by 28%. A negative correlation was found between the resilience and DoC for energy disruption scenarios. A 40 percent reduction in energy supply could decrease the food system performance by 34%. In contrast, achieving a more resilient food system in responding to labor shortage supports a push towards a more centralized system the decentralization of food systems can in fact, improve their resilience in responding to disruptions in the energy and water inputs. In contrast, achieving a more resilient food system in responding to labor shortage supports a push towards a more centralized system.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12571-022-01321-9.

Strengthening agroecological resilience through commons-based seed governance in the Philippines

The Filipino agricultural sector is exposed to multiple climatic, economic, and social risks that will likely intensify in the near future. Building agroecological resilience has been proposed to protect small-scale farmers' livelihoods and improve food security in the context of (unexpected) shocks and disruptions, and slow system changes such as climate change. This paper argues that commons-based seed production, based on collective management and ownership of seeds and varieties, can play a central role in building resilience capacities in smallholder communities. I explore this by applying an indicator-based framework to assess the contribution of the Filipino farmer network Magsasaka at Siyentipiko para sa Pag-unlad ng Agrikultura (MASIPAG) to agroecological resilience. I find that the networks' commons-based seed governance builds agroecological resilience in various ways. By equipping small-scale farmers with the tools to regain control over seed production and breeding, they become stewards of an actively evolving collection of varieties. The in situ maintenance and development of traditional, open-pollinated varieties and a network of diversified trial and backup farms build up buffering capacities and foster agrobiodiversity and local adaptation. A focus on regionally available natural resources reduces vulnerabilities to external factors. Adaptive capacities are strengthened through a high degree of flexibility and responsiveness achieved by self-organization and polycentric organizational structures. Broad participation, shared learning and spaces for experimentation support the development of farmers' capacities to respond to diverse challenges. Commons-based approaches to seed governance can thus strengthen agroecological resilience and long-term food security in smallholder agricultural systems.

Learning from innovative practitioners: Evidence for the sustainability and resilience of pasture fed livestock systems

There is an urgent need for transformational change in agriculture to address current and future issues caused by climate change, biodiversity loss and socio-ecological disruption. But change is slow to come and is hindered by a lack of transdisciplinary evidence on potential approaches which take a systems approach. The research described here was co-developed with the Pasture Fed Livestock Association in the UK to objectively evidence their practices. These include producing pasture-based meat from livestock fed on pasture and pasture-based forages alone. This approach sits alongside wider aims of fitting their practices with the ecological conditions on each individual farm to facilitate optimal production and working collaboratively through a forum for sharing knowledge. The research provides strong indications that the PFLA approach to livestock production is resilient and viable, as well as contributing to wider public goods delivery, despite variability within and between farms. It also reveals that learning and adaption of practice (through farmer experience) is central to farming using agro-ecological approaches. This fluidity of practice presents challenges for reductionist approaches to “measuring” agricultural innovations.

Pivoting is exhausting: A critical analysis of local food system resilience

As COVID-19 caused severe disruptions to global supply chains in March 2020, local and regional food producers were widely heralded for their flexibility in adapting and 'pivoting' to meet changing market demand amidst public health protocols in ways their behemothic agri-food counterparts could not. While "resilient food systems" have become both an academic buzzword and a practical goal for urban and municipal planners, there is an emergent critical literature that calls for greater attention to questions of power within discourses on resilience. This article contributes to a more critical geography of food system resilience through analyzing the experiences of local food producers and meat processors in the state of Iowa, U.S. during the early pandemic period using a moral economy framework. We argue that while the small-scale, producers who market direct-to-consumer may show resilience in their ability to cope with and adapt to system shocks due to short supply chains and social relations, their uneven experience with socio-emotional and economic 'costs' of resilience merits increased attention from both academics and policymakers. The ethic of 'hustle' within farming, along with the greater social 'embeddedness' of market transactions in local food, invites a certain self-exploitation that is differentially enacted and experienced based on factors such as age, gender, health status, and their level of dependence on farm income. Our conclusions suggest that any policies focused on strengthening local and regional food system resilience need to also focus on the wellbeing of local food producers and promote policies towards dignified and remunerative work.

Climate resilience and the human-water dynamics. The case of tomato production in Morocco

In Morocco, droughts are an increasing threat affecting water availability, agricultural production and producers' livelihoods. Moreover, water demand for irrigation has led to overexploitation of the groundwater table causing significant natural resource management challenges. The combination of groundwater changes and increasing drought risk raises concerns about the ability of agricultural producers to be resilient against drought. In this study, we describe the interactions of environmental and socioeconomic processes which influence farmers' livelihoods involved in tomato production in Morocco. Building on system dynamics modelling tools, we aim to improve the understanding of the long-term dynamic behavior of water management and to explore plausible policy scenarios necessary for sustainable and resilient water resource management and agricultural development. Our results show that tomato production is not yet severely impacted by droughts. However, droughts are accelerating the process of groundwater depletion, impacting farmers' livelihoods, by decreasing crop productivity and reducing farmer's revenue over a longer time period, especially since tomatoes are a high-value crop. Therefore, integrated and effective policies are presented as a set of measures for a systemic enhancement of resilience. We conclude that a more radical approach toward water resource conservation and upholding the most vulnerable producers has to be adopted in order to enhance a sustainable and inclusive resilience of the tomato production in Morocco.

Combining market and nonmarket food sources provides rural households with more options to achieve better diets in Southern Benin

This study examines the relative contributions to dietary diversity of the diversity of plant and domesticated animal species which rural households produce or collect, i.e., nonmarket food sources, versus the diversity of foods purchased in markets. Although opinions differ in the literature as to their relative importance, clarifying how different sources of food contribute to the dietary diversity of rural households in the developing world is important to inform policies and interventions to improve their food security and dietary quality. This case study was carried out among a random sample of 654 rural households in southern Benin during two seasons: when food is plentiful after harvest; and when food is scarcer between harvests. We collected data on crops, wild plants, and domesticated animals utilized by households, the number of markets they visited, and the diet of a mother in the household, with a structured 24-hour food frequency questionnaire. We hypothesize that the number of markets visited is an indicator of the diversity of foods available in the markets they have access to, and thus shows the contribution of markets as food sources. Results support this hypothesis and show that households that produced more plant and domesticated animal species and those that visited more markets had more diversified diets. Obtaining diverse foods from multiple sources provides households with more options to achieve better diets. These results suggest a need for a more holistic approach that recognizes the complementarities between market and nonmarket sources of foods. This approach should build on the diversity of species rural households already utilize, and on the ways they interact with markets.

Toward Better Food Security Using Concepts from Industry 5.0

The rapid growth of the world population has increased the food demand as well as the need for assurance of food quality, safety, and sustainability. However, food security can easily be compromised by not only natural hazards but also changes in food preferences, political conflicts, and food frauds. In order to contribute to building a more sustainable food system-digitally visible and processes measurable-within this review, we summarized currently available evidence for various information and communication technologies (ICTs) that can be utilized to support collaborative actions, prevent fraudulent activities, and remotely perform real-time monitoring, which has become essential, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Internet of Everything, 6G, blockchain, artificial intelligence, and digital twin are gaining significant attention in recent years in anticipation of leveraging the creativity of human experts in collaboration with efficient, intelligent, and accurate machines, but with limited consideration in the food supply chain. Therefore, this paper provided a thorough review of the food system by showing how various ICT tools can help sense and quantify the food system and highlighting the key enhancements that Industry 5.0 technologies can bring. The vulnerability of the food system can be effectively mitigated with the utilization of various ICTs depending on not only the nature and severity of crisis but also the specificity of the food supply chain. There are numerous ways of implementing these technologies, and they are continuously evolving.

Sustainable plant-based ingredients as wheat flour substitutes in bread making

Bread as a staple food has been predominantly prepared from refined wheat flour. The world’s demand for food is rising with increased bread consumption in developing countries where climate conditions are unsuitable for wheat cultivation. This reliance on wheat increases the vulnerability to wheat supply shocks caused by force majeure or man-made events, in addition to negative environmental and health consequences. In this review, we discuss the contribution to the sustainability of food systems by partially replacing wheat flour with various types of plant ingredients in bread making, also known as composite bread. The sustainable sources of non-wheat flours, their example use in bread making and potential health and nutritional benefits are summarized. Non-wheat flours pose techno-functional challenges due to significantly different properties of their proteins compared to wheat gluten, and they often contain off-favor compounds that altogether limit the consumer acceptability of final bread products. Therefore, we detail recent advances in processing strategies to improve the sensory and nutritional profiles of composite bread. A special focus is laid on fermentation, for its accessibility and versatility to apply to different ingredients and scenarios. Finally, we outline research needs that require the synergism between sustainability science, human nutrition, microbiomics and food science.

A systematic literature review of life cycle assessments in the durum wheat sector

It is recognised today that the global food system does not always deliver good nutrition for all human beings, and, additionally, dramatically contributes to climate change, environmental degradation, and biodiversity loss. In particular, the cereal sector threatens biodiversity and ecosystem functions, due to environmentally harmful farming activities, that critically alter climate conditions, along with energy, land, and water resources. According to this paper's authors' opinion, this supports the rationale of conducting a systematic literature review of Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) in the durum wheat (DW) sector, to highlight environmental hotspots and improvement potentials in the phases of cultivation and processing into finished products like pasta and bread. Methodological aspects were also discussed in this paper, to provide useful insights on how to best perform LCA in such agri-food supply chains. Given the findings from the papers reviewed, the authors could document that the cultivation phase is the primary environmental hotspot of DW-derived food products and suggested several mitigation and improvements solution including, organic farming practices, diversified cropping systems, reduction of N fertilisers and pesticides application, and irrigation optimisation strategies. Furthermore, the review highlighted that there exist two main gaps in the literature, mainly related to the scarce attention on the organic farming sector and DW landraces, and the lack of nutritional-property accounting in LCAs. Finally, although specific, the review may be of interest to researchers, LCA practitioners, farmers and producers, policy- and decision-makers, and other stakeholders, and could support the promotion of environmental sustainability in the DW sector.

The Multifaceted Relationship between the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Food System

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic is being questioned for its possible food transmission, due to several reports of the virus on food, outbreaks developed in food companies, as well as its origins linked to the wet market of Wuhan, China. The purpose of this review is to analyze the scientific evidence gathered so far on the relationship between food and the pandemic, considering all aspects of the food system that can be involved. The collected data indicate that there is no evidence that foods represent a risk for the transmission of SARS-CoV-2. In fact, even if the virus can persist on food surfaces, there are currently no proven cases of infection from food. Moreover, the pandemic showed to have deeply influenced the eating habits of consumers and their purchasing methods, but also to have enhanced food waste and poverty. Another important finding is the role of meat processing plants as suitable environments for the onset of outbreaks. Lessons learned from the pandemic include the correct management of spaces, food hygiene education for both food workers and common people, the enhancement of alternative commercial channels, the reorganization of food activities, in particular wet markets, and intensive farming, following correct hygiene practices. All these outcomes lead to another crucial lesson, which is the importance of the resilience of the food system. These lessons should be assimilated to deal with the present pandemic and possible future emergencies. Future research directions include further investigation of the factors linked to the food system that can favor the emergence of viruses, and of innovative technologies that can reduce viral transmission.

A malleable workflow for identifying the issues and indicators that define and measure sustainability in food systems

A variety of stakeholders are concerned with many issues regarding the sustainability of our complex global food system. Yet navigating and comparing the plethora of issues and indicators across scales, commodities, and regions can be daunting, particularly for different communities of practice with diverse goals, perspectives, and decision-making workflows. This study presents a malleable workflow to help different stakeholder groups identify the issues and indicators that define food system sustainability for their particular use case. By making information used in such workflows semantically-consistent, the output from each unique case can be easily compared and contrasted across domains, contributing to both a deeper and broader understanding of what issues and indicators define a resilient global food system.

Consumer-driven strategies towards a resilient and sustainable food system following the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic and associated public health restrictions temporarily disrupted food supply chains around the world and changed the way people shopped for food, highlighting issues with food systems resilience and sustainability. The aim of this study was to explore consumer-driven strategies towards a more resilient and sustainable food system in Australia, learning from experiences during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

During May–June 2020, a cross-sectional, online survey was conducted in Tasmania, Australia in a non-random sample of adults aged 18 years and over. The survey collected demographic data and posted the open-ended question: “How could Tasmania’s food system be better prepared for a disaster in the future?” Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the demographic data and thematic analysis was employed to analyse the qualitative data.

Results

Survey respondents (n = 698) were predominantly female (79%), over 55 years of age (48%), university educated (70%) and living with dependents (45%). Seven key themes were identified: (i) balance food exports with local needs; (ii) strengthen local food systems; (iii) increase consumer awareness of food supply chains; (iv) build collaboration and connection in the food system; (v) embed clear contingency arrangements; (vi) support community capacity building and individual self-sufficiency; and (vii) the food system coped well.

Conclusions

The consumer-driven strategies identified indicate multiple opportunities to increase resilience and sustainability in the food system to avoid future supply disruptions. Our findings indicate that considerable popular support for more resilient, local and sustainable food systems may be emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-022-13987-z.

Impacts of the Russia-Ukraine War on Global Food Security: Towards More Sustainable and Resilient Food Systems?

As a conflict between two major agricultural powers, the Russia–Ukraine war has various negative socioeconomic impacts that are now being felt internationally and might worsen, notably, for global food security. If the war deepens, the food crisis will worsen, posing a challenge to many countries, especially those that rely on food imports, such as those in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Simultaneously, the war came at a bad time for global food markets because food prices were already high due to disruptions in the supply chain caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, strong global demand, and poor harvests in some countries. Understanding how conflict-related disruptions in global food and fertilizer markets might affect price and availability is critical for understanding the overall impact on global food security. Further, four months into the war, its implications for food security suggest that this review is timely, urgent, and highly needed. Accordingly, this paper aims to investigate the Russia–Ukraine war’s direct and indirect impact on global food security. The paper highlights that the war resulted in immediate and far-reaching cascading consequences on global food security: Ukrainian exports have stopped, conscription and population displacement have caused labor shortages, access to fertilizers is restricted, and future harvests are uncertain. First, Ukraine’s export capacity has been hampered. Secondly, conscription and population displacement caused labor shortages. Thirdly, access to vital agricultural products such as fertilizers is also constrained. The war may delay spring planting and winter crop harvesting. Further, the war has indirect and cascading effects. Indeed, rising fertilizer costs may reduce their use and crop yields. Moreover, as seen during the 2007–2008 food crisis, export restrictions and speculation are driving up international prices and worsening the situation. Furthermore, the war triggered a panic buying movement at country and individual levels. Finally, the war may jeopardize the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), notably SDG 1 (No poverty), SDG 2 (Zero hunger), and DG 12 (Responsible consumption and production). However, the consequences of the war on food security are being exacerbated by a variety of underlying rigidities, vulnerabilities, and inefficiencies in global food systems. Accordingly, the transition toward healthy, equitable, and ecologically sustainable food systems must be strengthened by adopting urgent and long-term reforms and policies.

Agritourism and Farms Diversification in Italy: What Have We Learnt from COVID-19?

The COVID-19 pandemic has rapidly disrupted the household behavior in all areas and also those related to eating and daily food. Research carried out shows there have been significant changes compared to pre-COVID levels in the way consumers plan their food purchases. Based on the results of empirical data and emerging information such as ad hoc reports and analysis of academic literature, the authors aim to understand the effect of COVID-19 on agricultural and extra-agricultural activities in diversified Italian farms. More specifically, due to their importance at a national level, the focus of the analysis is represented by the agritourism, how they have reacted to the challenges posed by the pandemic, and towards which evolutionary lines they are orienting themselves to face the next future challenges. Empirical data for this study were collected through the use of a questionnaire survey, managed by the research team. The survey, conducted online during summer 2021, was designed by using a random stratified sampling for which the farms are characterized by a certain heterogeneity of the activities carried out (i.e., hospitality, processing of products, renewable energy production, etc.). The research activity covered the entire Italian territory and the number of responding farms with agritourism activities is equal to 77 (a 17.5% response rate). The results highlight the importance of farm with agritourism activities in dealing with COVID-19 crisis and policy implications in terms of support for the competitiveness of farms, exchange of knowledge, and innovations among farmers that should be taken into consideration to target the next rural development policy at the EU, the national and regional level. At the same time, the sample reaction methods to the pandemic and the changing business strategies highlight a certain resilience of Italian farms with agritourism activities, thus showing their ability to adapt.

Consumer behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic: An analysis of food purchasing and management behaviors in U.S. households through the lens of food system resilience

The COVID-19 pandemic has stimulated considerable interest in the resilience of the U.S. food system. Less attention has been paid to the resiliency characteristics of the final link in the food system - individual households. We use national survey data from July 2020 to understand the food acquisition, preparation, and management strategies that households implemented in response to the pandemic. We find a substantial increase in the amount of food prepared and consumed at home which scales with respondents' time availability, perceived risks of dining out, and pandemic-induced income disruption. We then identify several household responses to support this increase in home food consumption that are in line with practices suggested to enhance resiliency at other links in the food supply chain, including increased cold storage capacity and enhanced in-house capability via improved cooking and food management skills. We discuss how responses such as improved food skills can reduce the propagation of shocks through the supply chain by allowing greater flexibility and less waste, while actions such as increased home cold storage capacity could undermine system resilience by exacerbating bullwhip effects, i.e., amplifying consumer demand shocks that are propagated to upstream food supply chain actors.

European food banks and COVID-19: Resilience and innovation in times of crisis

This paper examines the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the functioning of European food banks and how resilient European food banks were in coping with the pandemic in 2020. We apply a multiple case study to assess how the first year of the pandemic affected European food banks' operations and the amount of redistributed food. We further investigate innovation practices that have been developed to cope with the new situation, hoping to draw lessons for imminent future waves of the pandemic and other social crises. Our study finds that, compared to 2019, in 2020 food banks were able to redistribute a significantly higher amount of food despite numerous social restrictions and other challenges associated with the pandemic. To explain this, we delve into the organizational innovations implemented by the studied food banks and find that the introduction of new strategies and new internal structures, as well as the establishment of new types of external network relations with other firms and/or public organizations, proved to be particularly important, enabling food banks to respond quickly and effectively to the new emergency. The study thus highlights the role of food banks in food redistribution and food waste reduction in times of crisis.

The Influence of Food Environments on Food Security Resilience during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Examination of Urban and Rural Difference in Kenya

Hunger and food insecurity has worsened due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The types of food environments (e.g., natural/built) that people can access may improve household resilience to food-system shocks. This paper examines (1) urban and rural differences in the perceived influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on agricultural, livelihoods, food environment attributes, diets; and (2) whether access to different food environments was associated with food security. A two-part telephonic survey (COVID-19 Surveillance Community Action Network Food Systems Tool and Household Food Insecurity Access Scale) was conducted in Western Kenya (n = 173) and an informal settlement in Nairobi (n = 144) in January/February 2021. Limitations on the acquisition of farm inputs and movement restrictions had an adverse impact on agriculture and food sales. Urban residents reported a more significant impact on livelihoods (97% vs. 87%, p < 0.001), with day laborers being the most impacted. Rural respondents reported access to significantly more food environments and lower food insecurity. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that younger respondents, ≤1 income source, had more difficulty acquiring food, decreased access to cultivated environments, and increased access to informal markets were predictors for higher food insecurity. These data indicate that access to specific types of food environments may improve household resilience.

Optimization Based Modeling for the Food Supply Chain's Resilience to Outbreaks

Scant research focuses on the resiliency of food supply chain networks to outbreaks, despite the estimated 600 million global foodborne illnesses annually. Outbreaks that cross country, state and provincial lines are virulent due to the number of people they can affect and difficulty controlling them. Research is needed on food supply chain networks, which are not well-characterized in relation to foodborne illnesses or generally. This paper introduces the United States Food, Energy, and State Transportation (US-FEAST) model and demonstrates its applicability via analysis of a hypothetical demand shock resulting from multistate food contamination. US-FEAST is an optimization-based model across all fifty states with yearly timesteps to 2030. It is a framework integrating food system data from multiple individual data sources. To calibrate, we develop a bilevel optimization routine to generate synthetic, state-level data and provide estimates of otherwise unavailable data at the intersections of the food and transportation systems. The results of US-FEAST elucidate potential heterogenous state-level variations in response, regional changes in food flows, vulnerabilities in the supply chain, and implications for food system resilience. While the generated data and scenarios are not empirical evidence, they provide insights to aid in planning by projecting outcomes and intervention effects. Our results estimate a 23% beef production decrease and 4% price decrease provide a road map toward data needs for quantifying food system resilience to foodborne illness. US-FEAST and its framework may have global utility for studying food safety in national and international food supply chain networks.

Evaluation of Cropland System Resilience to Climate Change at Municipal Scale Through Robustness, Adaptability, and Transformability: A Case Study of Hubei Province, China

A cropland system is one of the most sensitive socio-ecological systems to climate change, such as drought and flood. Facing frequent extreme weather events worldwide, how to improve cropland system resilience to climate change (CSRCC) and thus ensure food production has been concerned. Although a small number of studies have attempted to evaluate CSRCC through single or multiple indicators, few studies have considered the perspective of the three basic capacities of resilience (i.e., robustness, adaptability, and transformability), which could ignore the dynamic characteristics of cropland system resilience against shocks within a certain period. Therefore, this study first constructs an evaluation index system from the three capacities of system resilience. Then, taking Hubei province, China, as a case and comprehensively using the methods of Delphi, AHP, and TOPSIS to assess the spatio-temporal characteristics of CSRCC at the municipal scale from 2011 to 2018. On this basis, the regional disparities of CSRCC are analyzed by using the Theil coefficient. The results show that the CSRCC of Hubei province fluctuates on a downward trend, with the lowest in 2017 and the highest in 2013. Most municipalities have witnessed a pattern of fluctuated decline, except for a few ones in the plains, such as Wuhan and Jingmen. Generally, municipalities in the plains have greater scores, while some municipalities in the southern and eastern hilly regions show higher adaptability and transformability. In addition, adaptability contributes the least to the CSRCC at the municipal scale. At last, indicator selection against different research objects, influencing mechanism of CSRCC, and policy implications are discussed. This study is expected to provide a reference for the practice in sustainable management and utilization of cropland systems.

Diversified Farming Systems: Impacts and Adaptive Responses to the COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States, Norway and China

The COVID-19 pandemic fully exposed the vulnerability of the global agri-food system to shocks and stresses, highlighting the need for transformation and action to make it more resilient and inclusive. This paper offers a unique insight into the global nature of the COVID-19 pandemic by examining impacts and responses in the agri-food sector within three very distinct contexts, namely the United States, Norway, and China. Focusing on small, diversified farms, the study builds on prior research with the same farmers and support organizations from an on-going collaboration. Firstly, we conducted a short review of policy adaptations to understand how governments, the private sector, non-profit organizations, and communities “stepped up” to provide emergency relief, specialized training, and recovery support for farmers, support that was instrumental in preventing more devastating impacts in all three countries. Secondly, drawing from in-depth interviews with farmers (23) and government and non-governmental support organizations (19), we mapped the vulnerability and resiliency of selected farmers to shocks that severely disrupted traditional supply chains during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected on both the negative and positive impacts of the pandemic to farmer inputs, including labor, operations, and markets, how these changed from the initial lockdowns in early 2020 and through 2021, and on farmer adaptive responses to these impacts. In some contexts, innovation and adaptive responses counteracted negative impacts. We saw diversifying markets, catering to consumer safety concerns, switching to direct and e-markets, hiring in more labor or relying on family labor, and switching to high demand crops and products as the most prominent adaptive responses. Farmers who lacked access to information and government programs, in large part because of language, technology and institutional barriers, missed out on pandemic related opportunities and suffered the most. As we enter the post-pandemic new normal it is important to take stock of lessons learned, and to continue to support those initiatives and innovations that were pivotal not only for weathering the storm, but for building a more inclusive and resilient agri-food system in the long-run.

Changes in Climate Vulnerability and Projected Water Stress of The Gambia's Food Supply Between 1988 and 2018: Trading With Trade-Offs

Background

The coexistence of under- and overnutrition is of increasing public health concern in The Gambia. Fruits, vegetables and pulses are essential to healthy and sustainable diets, preventing micronutrient deficiencies and non-communicable diseases, while cereals significantly contribute to energy intake. However, environmental changes are predicted to intensify, reducing future yields of these crops if agricultural productivity and resilience are not improved. The Gambia is highly climate-vulnerable and import-dependent, but the extent of its reliance on other climate-vulnerable countries for its supply of nutritionally important crops is currently unknown.

Methods

We used United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization data, with novel origin-tracing algorithms applied, to analyse The Gambia's supply of cereals, fruits, vegetables and pulses between 1988 and 2018. The climate vulnerability of countries was assessed using Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN) index scores, and projected water stress (2040) assessed using World Resources Institute (WRI) scores. Multilevel generalized linear mixed-effects models were used to identify changes in the overall climate vulnerability and projected water stress of supply.

Results

Between 1988 and 2018, The Gambia's supply of cereals, fruits, vegetables and pulses diversified, with the proportion domestically produced falling (Cereals: 61.4%-27.7%; Fruits: 93.0%-55.7%; Vegetables: 24.6%-16.3%; Pulses: 100.0%-76.0%). The weighted-average ND-GAIN scores improved (indicating less climate vulnerability) for supply of all crops except cereals, but the weighted-average WRI score for supply deteriorated (indicating increased projected water stress) for all crops except vegetables. When just considering imports, weighted-average ND-GAIN scores deteriorated for fruits and cereals while showing no significant change for other food groups, and the WRI score deteriorated for cereals only.

Conclusions

Despite some notable improvements in the environmental vulnerability of The Gambia's supply of nutritionally important crops (particularly vegetables), considerable, and in some cases increasing, proportions of their supply are produced in countries that are vulnerable to climate change and future water stress. This may have implications for the availability, affordability, and hence consumption of these crops in The Gambia, ultimately exacerbating existing nutritional challenges. Exploring the options to strengthen supply resilience-such as altering trade patterns, agricultural techniques and diets-should be prioritized.

Emergency food supplies and food security in Wuhan and Nanjing, China, during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from a field survey

MOTIVATION

Detailed empirical work on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on food security is scant. Local management of food security has received little attention.

PURPOSE

This article describes emergency food policies in Wuhan and Nanjing, China during lockdown in 2020 and their implications for household food security in the two cities.

METHODS AND APPROACH

Policy documents and background data describe the emergency measures. Online surveys of residents of two Chinese cities were used to gauge household food security.

FINDINGS

Despite the determined efforts of provincial and city governments to ensure that food reached people who were locked down in Wuhan, or subject to restrictions on movement in Nanjing, households experienced some decline in food security. Most households found they could not access their preferred foods. But a minority of households did not get enough to eat.Government had contingency plans for the pandemic that ensured that most people had sufficient, if not preferred, food. But not all households were fully covered.

POLICY IMPLICATIONS

A more resilient system of food distribution is needed, including a relatively closed and independent home delivery system. Grassroots organizations such as residential community committees, property management organizations, and spontaneous volunteer groups need to be brought into the management of emergency food provision.

Green-resilient supply chain network design for perishable products considering route risk and horizontal collaboration under robust interval-valued type-2 fuzzy uncertainty: A case study in food industry

A green and resilient (G-Resilient) supply chain network is designed for perishable products under disruption risks and epistemic uncertainties. This study aims to minimize effects of the disruption by presenting new strategies, such as multiple sourcing, financial suppliers, horizontal collaboration, route risk, and coverage radius, in designing a new multi-objective mixed-integer linear programming model for multi-product, multi-period, multi-modal G-Resilient supply chain. Then, a novel robust possibilistic programming (RPP) approach is presented using credibility measure and membership functions of generalized interval-valued type-2 fuzzy variables to face the epistemic uncertainties, such as supply capacity of facilities, customer demand, transportation cost, and CO₂ emission factor, in the proposed mathematical model. An improved version of augmented ε-constraint method (AUGMECON2) is also employed to produce separate Pareto-optimal solutions. Moreover, the study compares the proposed RPP with possibilistic chance-constrained programming model and illustrates its advantages; in the standard deviation of CO₂ emission objective function, its performance has improved by about 44.91%. Finally, the model's performance has been verified by a real case study in the food industry, and managerial implications have been provided.