Towards More Sustainable Food Systems—14 Lessons Learned

Abstract

Food production, processing, distribution and consumption are among the major contributors to global environmental change. At the same time, food systems need to effectively respond to the demands of a growing world population, and already today many communities and individuals are affected by food insecurity. Moving towards sustainable food value chains is one of the greatest and most complex challenges of this century. To explore promising solutions and specific problems in this context, and to discuss achieved progress, this Special Issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health was initiated. The publications enrich our knowledge about essential changes required in the food systems, such as more effective food distribution, avoidance or valorisation of food waste and less meat consumption. Knowing what to change and knowing how to actually achieve such change are two different themes. It becomes evident that there is still an incomplete picture regarding how innovations in the food system can be strengthened to catalyse transformations at a larger scale. Grassroot initiatives require more supporting efforts to effectively influence policies, and the lack of coordination among civil society initiates must be overcome. Sustainability-oriented companies in food supply chains also have a major role to play.

Green Practices for Global Supply Chains in Diverse Industrial, Geographical, and Technological Settings: A Literature Review and Research Agenda

“…As shown, the general review-presenting evidence from the literature, practitioner reports and other secondary data-is the most common method (33%). Among the papers in this cluster, we find Lu et al presenting a comparison between reuse practices for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment in China and Europe [25], while Kusch-Brandt proposes a list of sustainability lessons learned for the food industry [26].…”

The Biopsychosocial Impact of COVID-19 on Older Adults

“…The prevalence of food deserts in rural areas also makes older adults in such areas increasingly vulnerable. When grocery stores do exist, they are less likely to have the infrastructure in place for grocery delivery ( Kusch-Brandt, 2020 ).…”

Technical Efficiency of China’s Agriculture and Output Elasticity of Factors Based on Water Resources Utilization

“…Real options are needed to approach to the challenge of grain production sustainability for water resource protection [6]. Realizing the rational allocation of agricultural production factors and protecting water resources is an issue that needs to be solved for the current sustainable growth of grain [7,8]. At the present stage, the growth mode of grain yield in China is excessively dependent on the increase of the input factors [9].…”