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Summary The Covid‐19 pandemic will have impacts that will vary across countries and commodity sectors, reflecting factors such as the importance of trade, differences in the functioning of supply chains and the market which producers and farmers supply. Some of these effects will be relatively short‐lived; others will be longer‐lasting. In this context, we set out the channels through which food prices will be affected by the Covid‐19 pandemic, emphasising the short‐ and longer‐term nature of the main effects. We focus on the UK but the insights extend to other (importing) countries. Drawing on a recent econometric model of UK retail food prices that accounts for both domestic and international factors, we show that the key drivers have potentially off‐setting effects, suggesting that the Covid‐19 shock to the food sector is likely to be different from previous shocks, particularly the commodity price crises of 2007–2008 and 2011. In many European countries, the Covid‐19 pandemic may manifest itself as something of an ‘odd crisis’, in which lower world and farm‐gate prices co‐exist with higher domestic retail prices. These off‐setting factors will frame policy responses targeted at different stages of the food chain across countries.

PurposeFor small businesses, the strategic objective of going green may be a gendered process. Male and female entrepreneurs, due to their gender roles, respond differently to intrinsic motivations and extrinsic pressures to go green. This study aims to investigate whether women-run or men-run firms are more likely to go green due to intrinsic motivations versus extrinsic pressures. Moreover, it examines how the effect of gender on going green is moderated by market competition and gender inequality.Design/methodology/approachThis study employs a dataset of small businesses in 40 countries, mostly developing, in Eastern Europe, Western Asia and Northern Africa.FindingsWomen-run firms are more likely to go green due to both intrinsic motivations and extrinsic pressures compared to men-run firms. Notably, market competition weakens the positive effect of female ownership on firm going green while gender inequality amplifies the relationship.Originality/valueThis research is one of the first to examine the gendered process of going green in small businesses. Using the social feminist and institutional theories to understand how male and female entrepreneurs go green for different types of motivations, this research expands understanding of the green transition of small businesses.