Local food crop production can fulfil demand for less than one-third of the population

Kinnunen, Pekka; Guillaume, Joseph H. A.; Taka, Maija; D’Odorico, Paolo; Siebert, Stefan; Puma, Michael J.; Jalava, Mika; Kummu, Matti

doi:10.1038/s43016-020-0060-7

Cited by 146 publications

(89 citation statements)

References 50 publications

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“…WFPs could also be central to efforts directed at empowering local market actors as well as reducing the distance between consumers and producers and the overreliance on globalized value chains. Although, recent research by Kinnunen et al [ 30 ] highlights the unfeasibility of localizing production for important global staples such as rice, maize and temperate cereals, there is increasing evidence that the local trade of minor crops, traditional varieties, and WFPs has potential to empower communities and increase livelihoods in rural areas, particularly of women and youth [ 31 , 32 ]. Meanwhile, the COVID-19 crisis has revealed the vulnerability of our global food systems to disease-related disruptions and shocks [ 33 , 34 , 35 ].…”

Section: The Importance Of Wild Food Plants Todaymentioning

confidence: 99%

Born to Eat Wild: An Integrated Conservation Approach to Secure Wild Food Plants for Food Security and Nutrition

Borelli

Hunter

Powell

et al. 2020

Plants

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Overlooked in national reports and in conservation programs, wild food plants (WFPs) have been a vital component of food and nutrition security for centuries. Recently, several countries have reported on the widespread and regular consumption of WFPs, particularly by rural and indigenous communities but also in urban contexts. They are reported as critical for livelihood resilience and for providing essential micronutrients to people enduring food shortages or other emergency situations. However, threats derived from changes in land use and climate, overexploitation and urbanization are reducing the availability of these biological resources in the wild and contributing to the loss of traditional knowledge associated with their use. Meanwhile, few policy measures are in place explicitly targeting their conservation and sustainable use. This can be partially attributed to a lack of scientific evidence and awareness among policymakers and relevant stakeholders of the untapped potential of WFPs, accompanied by market and non-market barriers limiting their use. This paper reviews recent efforts being undertaken in several countries to build evidence of the importance of WFPs, while providing examples of cross-sectoral cooperation and multi-stakeholder approaches that are contributing to advance their conservation and sustainable use. An integrated conservation approach is proposed contributing to secure their availability for future generations.

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Section: The Importance Of Wild Food Plants Todaymentioning

confidence: 99%

Born to Eat Wild: An Integrated Conservation Approach to Secure Wild Food Plants for Food Security and Nutrition

Borelli

Hunter

Powell

et al. 2020

Plants

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“…The sustainability of the food supply chain is certainly essential ( 34 ). Kinnunen et al showed that less than one-third of the world's population can meet their food demand within a 100-km radius ( 39 ). We should also change our view of food and diet which should no longer, or rather not only, considered an energy source but a reservoir of bioactive molecules beneficial to human health.…”

Section: Citizen Fortificationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rethinking Urban and Food Policies to Improve Citizens Safety After COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2020

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The ongoing pandemic caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is literally changing the world. From December 2019 to date, more than 22 million cases have been reported worldwide and global health institutions are acting to slow down the virus transmission and are looking for possible prevention strategies in case of a new outbreak. As in other endemic or pandemic phenomena, the issues mostly covered by scientific and media attention are related to the diagnostic and therapeutic approach of COVID-19. However, a still neglected issue regards the adoption of a more systemic approach considering the close connection among the infection, the environment, and human behaviors, including the role of diet and urban management. To shed light on this issue, we brought together a faculty group involving experts in environment and biodiversity, food safety, human nutrition, and behavior, bioprospecting, as well as medical doctors having a deep knowledge of the complex historical relationship between humanity and vector-borne infections. Two main aspects emerged from the integrative overview of the current COVID-19 pandemic: (i) the scientific community should start sharing social actions and policy advocacy based on the assumption that human health strongly depends upon a sustainable exploitation of natural resources in populated areas; (ii) the specific strategic role of the cities in developing sustainable food systems and promoting healthy dietary patterns. Definitely, some priority issues should be addressed to achieve these goals, such as global efforts to increase food safety and security, which would benefit from urban and peri-urban agriculture enhancement, smallholder food producers support, and ecosystem services and local biodiversity maintenance.

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“…According to official statistics [34], in the Comunidad de Madrid, the foods with the greatest weight in public procurement are: milk for drinking and dairy, meat, fruit, potatoes, and vegetables. In monetary terms, the highest expenditures, in descending order, are meat, fish, dairy products, and fresh fruits.…”

Section: Public Procurementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Public Food Procurement as a Driving Force for Building Local and Agroecological Food Systems: Farmers’ Skepticism in Vega Baja del Jarama, Madrid (Spain)

Simón‐Rojo

Couceiro²,

Valle³

et al. 2020

Land

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In the last decade, efforts to re-localize the food system have been gaining ground in a way that is intended to induce changes in the primary sector, thereby improving its conditions and sustainability. The European Union has identified food as one of the ten key sectors with outstanding potential for an ecological transition, and public procurement of (organic) food as an appropriate policy to foster agricultural development and support small farmers. In this study, we analyze changes in land use and farming dynamics in three municipalities close to the metropolitan area of Madrid (Spain). We also explore how stakeholders and farmers perceive the driving forces of these changes and the potential for public procurement in providing stability for farmers and more specifically, boosting the articulation and consolidation of the emerging agroecological sector in an up-to-date hostile peri-urban environment. Some urban policies and food strategies in nearby cities, such as Madrid, have introduced measures to promote sustainable food in public procurement. The procurement could drive 10% of the total food grown in the Comunidad de Madrid, with large variations in the impact on different food subsectors. However, if public procurement is to be organic, local production has no capacity to meet increases in demand, except for honey and oil. Food procurement would not lead to improved stability and increases in farmers’ incomes if public policies to boost ecological transition are not adopted in parallel. For farmers, economic viability takes precedence over other problems, and although public procurement has been mainstreamed as a valuable tool to support local agriculture, stakeholders do not have high expectations for it. The research shows that farm size and specialization have a strong influence on market orientation, and the agroecological farmers and social movements that support them are primed for innovation adoption and may act as catalysts for the process.

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Local food crop production can fulfil demand for less than one-third of the population

Cited by 146 publications

References 50 publications

Born to Eat Wild: An Integrated Conservation Approach to Secure Wild Food Plants for Food Security and Nutrition

Born to Eat Wild: An Integrated Conservation Approach to Secure Wild Food Plants for Food Security and Nutrition

Rethinking Urban and Food Policies to Improve Citizens Safety After COVID-19 Pandemic

Public Food Procurement as a Driving Force for Building Local and Agroecological Food Systems: Farmers’ Skepticism in Vega Baja del Jarama, Madrid (Spain)

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