Sustainability in Agribusiness Food Chains

Food systems have the potential to nurture human health and support environmental sustainability, but regrettably, our current systems of food production threaten both (Lancet Commission, 2019). Today, agriculture is responsible for 20–30 percent of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions; is the leading cause of deforestation, land use change, and biodiversity loss; accounts for 70 percent of all water consumed; and is a major source of water pollution (Fischer and Garnett, 2016). 

With the majority of mankind now residing in urban environments (World Bank/FAO, 2017), increasing rates of urbanization are putting more pressure on water and land resources; influencing what foods we eat, where and when we eat them; the way our food is grown, processed and delivered to consumers; and impacting on our health and nutrition (RUAF, 2016). With the demand for food generally exceeding the capacity of the adjacent agricultural region, cities are largely dependent on external food sources. However, while globalization has increased the diversity and range of food available to consumers, food chains have become longer and with that, cities have become more susceptible to climate-induced food shortages, food price hikes, breakdowns in logistics, and failures in food safety management systems (IPES, 2017). 

Collectively, these issues have led to a renewed focus on food systems, their sustainability and resilience, the potential to create viable employment and livelihoods, and the ability to provide access to affordable, safe, and nutritious food (World Bank/FAO, 2017). While a more systematic consideration of urban food systems will naturally focus attention on the downstream portions of food value chains, helping to enhance their productivity and competitiveness, to improve both the efficiency and sustainability of urban food systems, significantly greater investments in marketing and distribution systems, food quality and safety, transport and logistics, and improved food waste management must occur in parallel.

Every aspect of the food system influences the availability and accessibility of diverse, nutritious foods, and, thus, the ability of consumers to choose healthy diets (FAO, 2014). However, the linkages from the food system to nutritional outcomes are often indirect, mediated through incomes, prices, knowledge, and cultural factors. Furthermore, if the food system is to be both efficient and sustainable, the many actors participating in the many activities to bring food from the paddock to plate require infrastructure, facilities, services, and both formal and informal regulations to govern their business decisions. Because of the complexity of the system, the number of actors, and the relationships between actors, where each actor influences and in turn is influenced by other actors, a holistic systems-based approach is required. 

The primary driving force in any food market is the consumer (Gehlhar and Regmi, 2005). Income growth, lifestyle changes brought about by urbanization, and the changing structure of the family are resulting in significant dietary changes worldwide. With an increase in consumer purchasing power and the increasing opportunity cost of time to prepare food, the demand for high-value ready-to-eat and ready-to-heat food products is expanding. In parallel, the consumption of coarse grains, roots, and tubers are decreasing with a commensurate increase in the consumption of higher-value food products including meat, dairy products, fats and oils, and in most markets, fresh fruit and vegetables (Global Panel on Agriculture and Food Systems for Nutrition, 2016). However, growth in the consumption of more convenient, highly processed food is of concern, for the increasing consumption of sugar, saturated fat and salt is known to contribute to health problems like obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and other diet-related non-communicable diseases (Chicago Council on Global Affairs, 2016). Addressing obesity and other non-communicable food-related diseases is an urgent and immediate issue (Global Panel on Agriculture and Food Systems for Nutrition, 2016), because, today, six of the top eleven diseases affecting mankind are diet-related (IFPRI, 2017). 

To understand food systems and their impact on society and the environment, we must embrace the concept of sustainable food value chains. FAO (2014) considers a sustainable food value chain as encompassing all the farms and agribusiness firms (which includes input suppliers, collector agents and traders, wholesalers and food processors, retailers and service support industries, public officials, civil society organizations, researchers and development practitioners) and their successive coordinated value-adding activities that produce raw agricultural materials and, where applicable, transform them into food products that are sold to final consumers and disposed of after use, in a manner that is profitable throughout, has broad-based benefits for society, and does not permanently deplete natural resources. 

For this Special Issue of Sustainability, we welcome original contributions that demonstrate how the various stakeholders in food value chains have collectively addressed any of the following issues:

• Sustainable food marketing
• Adoption of innovative products/processes to enhance sustainability at any stage of the food chain
• Alternative business models for linking farmers to markets
• Facilitating the adoption of safe, sustainable quality management systems
• Green purchasing
• Minimizing food waste
• Value chain governance, power, and trust
• Minimizing risk and uncertainty
• Promoting local food
• Improving dietary and nutritional outcomes  

References:

Chicago Council on Global Affairs. 2016. Growing food for growing cities: transforming food systems in an urbanizing world.

FAO. 2014. Developing sustainable food value chains – Guiding principles. Rome.

Fischer, C.G. and Garnett, T. 2016. Plates, pyramids and planets: developments in national healthy and sustainable dietary guidelines: a state of play assessment. FAO/Food Climate Research Network.

Gehlhar, M. and Regmi, A. 2005. Factors shaping global food markets. In Regmi, A and Gehlhar, M (ed). New Directions in Global Food Markets. USDA.

Global Panel on Agriculture and Food Systems for Nutrition. 2016. Food systems and diets: Facing the challenges of the 21st century. London, UK

International Food Policy Research Institute. 2017. Global Food Policy Report. Washington DC.

IPES. 2017. What makes urban food policy happen? Insights from five case studies.  International

Lancet Commission. 2019. Food in the Anthropocene: the EAT–Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems.

RUAF Foundation. 2016. The role of private sector in city region food systems. Analysis report.

World Bank/FAO. 2017. Food systems for an urbanizing world. Knowledge Product. 

Dr. Peter J Batt
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• sustainable food systems/chains
• food waste
• good agricultural practice
• alternative business models
• food marketing; quality management systems