rethinkingthecity_regionalfoodsystems3

8/8/2019 rethinkingthecity_regionalfoodsystems3

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Regional Food Systems, Dislocation, Identity and Cultural Revival

Mike Small BA, MA, FRSALecturer, UNESCO Chair of Sustainable Development at Turin University

Director, Fife Diet, a local eating experiment


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The principal aim of the

Outlook Tower (1906) was

to restore the relationship

between individuals and

their urban andgeographical space, their

historical heritage, and the

universal body of knowledge

accumulated by men.


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today we will touch briefly on: Why place matters

Global food systems : whats the problem?

City-region food alternatives: whats thepotential?

Try and think about these issues in terms of

place, proximity, intimacy, immediacy & scale.We should also take a wider view and try andlisten and re-think concepts like quality

efficiency cost value and meaning.


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The stone drops into the pond and a secondlater it is smooth again. You will turn the pageand carry on with your life. Last week welearnt that climate change could eliminate halfthe worlds species; that 25 primate species arealready slipping into extinction; that biologicalrepositories of carbon are beginning to releaseit, decades ahead of schedule. But everyone iswatching and waiting for everyone else to

move. The unspoken universal thought is this:if it were really so serious, surely someonewould do something?


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Fife Diet 2007-2010

The project started in October 2007 and has runas a voluntary network growing from 14 memberto 1200+ in that period

Spent a year eating food exclusively from Fife

Now encouraging wider membership and invitingpeople to find their own level building up to a80/20 model

We hold talks around food hosted by people intheir own communities - ongoing through 2010

Began to map the region for producers anddevelop and strengthen our network

This is cultural reclamation of Scottish foodculture

This is action research allied to policy action andcommunity development

We view this as explicitly part of the wider

transition movement which itself is part of theenvironmental justice movement and the foodsovereignty movement


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Our 5 Pledges for Low Carbon Sustainable Food

Eat local (defined

regionally)

Eat less meat

Eat more organic

Reduce food waste

Compost More


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The Scottish Government has announced its intention to legislatefor an 80% reduction in greenhouse-gas emissions by 2050 -

probably the most ambitious climate change abatement programme

in the world. It should be cheered to the echo for that commitment -

but it's one it cannot possibly reach without changing fundamentally

the way we produce, process and distribute our food.

- Hugh Raven


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So what is our methodology and what is ourconcept of the bioregion?


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Seasonality = Living within Limits

Key skillscooking, bottling, pickling, storing etc

Breakthrough skill is not in the kitchen but in thehead

The idea of limitless choice is endemic

The idea of enough is resurgent (enoughinformation, enough stuff, enough television,enough food, enough children, enough time)?


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Landshare

SAGE

Growing Communities

Wellfehd

Welsh Food Co-ops

Grofun Nourish

Isle of Bute

Skye Food Links

Suffolk Diet

Norfolk Diet

Cornish Diet Munster Menu


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Scottish Climate Change Bill

* at least 80% cuts of all greenhouse gases (on 1990 levels) by 2050

* a 2020 target of at least 42% reduction in greenhouse gases

* include the full effects of emissions from international aviation and shipping

from the start

* requires ministers to report on consumption-based emissions - i.e.

emissions produced anywhere in the world that result from Scotland's

consumption of goods and services

* a strong duty on all public bodies to make a full contribution to tackling

climate change and

* strong energy efficiency measures to tackle fuel poverty and save energy


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2. Some

Problems with

Global Food

Systems


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Pork - exports 195,000 tonnes / imports 240,000 tonnes

Lamb - exports 102,000 tonnes / imports 47,000 tonnes

Butter exports 49,000 tonnes / imports 47,000 tonnes

Poultry exports 170,000 tonnes / imports 363,000 tonnes

Fresh Milk exports 119,000 tonnes / imports 114,000 tonnes

Live Pigs exports 110,000 pigs / imports 200, 000 pigs

Source: The Absurd UK Food Swap quoting Caroline Lucas Relocalising Europes Food Supply (2001)


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9 billion: the annual cost of food miles to the UK, including time lost

from congestion, road wear and tear, ill health from pollution and noise,

and road crashes.Source: Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 2005

898: the average number of miles we drive to shop for food each year,compared with 747 in 1992. Source: Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs2005

25%: the percentage of food transport delivered by HGVs on British

roads. (Source: Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 2005)

15%: the estimated HGV mileage due to drivers getting lost. (Source: Telford and Wrekin Council)


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Glasgow Harvest


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A sense of community


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3. Behaviour

Change, Limits

and Longing, Food

maps andmapping


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Institutions re-localising

Innovation in what we grow

Councils responding and showing leadership

Closed-loop systems (ie waste, fuel, compost)

Land being shared and worked collectively

Better food, better connected communities


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Focusing only on behaviour change (individualistic)

Maintain within a small self-selecting group

Retain local food as a premium benefitting only a small group of specialistproducers

No innovation of agricultural policy


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Hegemony of Increment

Adopt little steps Adopt marketing

strategies

Focus on green

consumerism

Create offers which

are easy, painless

Use non-environmental

motivations

Use celebrity

endorsements

(Nicole Ritchie lovesthe planet)

Source: Meeting EnvironmentalChallenges: The Role of HumanIdentity, Tom Crompton WWF


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Asking a different question

Is our behaviour the problem? Depends who we are.

Farmers? Supermarket CEOs? Public procurement

officers? Pesticide salesmen? DEFRA? Monsanto?

To what extent do we truly believe that consumer

behaviour will change society?

When are we going to legislate? There is no point in

asking people to change their behaviour if their wholesocial environment makes this extremely difficult.


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What are we doing (Fife Diet)?

Burntisland & Falkland Community Gardens and allotments

Innovate new growing: Quinoa (keen - wa)

Wholesaling Oats & wheat

Popularisation and mainstreaming: 80 / 20 Bread Club & Food Hubs

Publish and communicate: new / social media (twitter, facebook,

website, e-newsletter) local cookery booklets, seasonal growing &

cooking calendar

Working with schools and colleges

Expanding the Fife Diet model


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Social policy implications at Scottish level?

Trade Barriers / controls: shift from export led growth targets

Enforce enlightened public procurement policy

Engage mass conversion to organic methods

Develop horticultural / agricultural training, education & apprenticeships Planning: controls of supermarkets

Complete ban on GM

Large-scale urban agriculture

Engage the concept of food sovereignty

Change work patterns: three day week


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