Système alimentaire

Articles

• The place of food : mapping out the ‘local’ in local food systems
  3 novembre 2021, par Mathilde COUDRAY

  ‘Local food systems’ movements, practices, and writings pose increasingly visible structures of resistance and counter-pressure to conventional globalizing food systems. The place of food seems to be the quiet centre of the discourses emerging with these movements. The purpose of this paper is to identify issues of ‘place’, which are variously described as the ‘local’and ‘community’ in the local food systems literature, and to do so in conjunction with the geographic discussion focused on questions and meanings around these spatial concepts. I see raising the profile of questions, complexity and potential of these concepts as an important role and challenge for the scholar-advocate in the realm of local food systems, and for geographers sorting through them. Both literatures benefit from such a foray. The paper concludes, following a ‘cautiously normative’ tone, that there is strong argument for emplacing our food systems, while simultaneously calling for careful circumspection and greater clarity regarding how we delineate and understand the ‘local’. Being conscious of the constructed nature of the ‘local’, ‘community’ and ‘place’ means seeing the importance of local social, cultural and ecological particularity in our everyday worlds, while also recognizing that we are reflexively and dialectially tied to many and diverse locals around the world.

• When food systems meet sustainability – Current narratives and implications for actions
  27 octobre 2021, par Mathilde COUDRAY

  The concept of food system has gained prominence in recent years amongst both scholars and policy-makers. Experts from diverse disciplines and backgrounds have in particular discussed the nature and origin of the “unsustainability” of our modern food systems. These efforts tend, however, to be framed within distinctive disciplinary narratives. In this paper we propose to explore these narratives and to shed light on the explicit -or implicit- epistemological assumptions, mental models, and disciplinary paradigms that underpin those. The analysis indicates that different views and interpretations prevail amongst experts about the nature of the “crisis”, and consequently about the research and priorities needed to “fix” the problem. We then explore how sustainability is included in these different narratives and the link to the question of healthy diets. The analysis reveals that the concept of sustainability, although widely used by all the different communities of practice, remains poorly defined, and applied in different ways and usually based on a relatively narrow interpretation. In so doing we argue that current attempts to equate or subsume healthy diets within sustainability in the context of food system may be misleading and need to be challenged. We stress that trade-offs between different dimensions of food system sustainability are unavoidable and need to be navigated in an explicit manner when developing or implementing sustainable food system initiatives. Building on this overall analysis, a framework structured around several entry points including outcomes, core activities, trade-offs and feedbacks is then proposed, which allows to identify key elements necessary to support the transition toward sustainable food systems.

• The practice and politics of food system localization
  3 novembre 2021, par Mathilde COUDRAY

  As an apparent counterpoint to globalization, food system localization is often assumed to be a good, progressive and desirable process. Such thinking rests on a local–global binary that merits closer scrutiny. This paper examines the social construction of “local”, by analyzing the practice and politics of food system localization efforts in Iowa, USA. It argues that desirable social or environmental outcomes may not always map neatly onto the spatial content of “local”, which itself involves the social construction of scale. These contradictions in turn relate to differing political inflections discernible in food system localization. Localization can be approached defensively, emphasizing the boundaries and distinctions between a culturally and socially homogeneous locality needing protection from non-local “others”. But through the experience of new social and gustatory exchanges, localization can also promote increased receptivity to difference and diversity. More emergent, fluid and inclusive notions of the “local”, however, may challenge the very project of crafting and maintaining distinctive food identities for local places. These themes are explored through a case study of food system localization efforts and activities in Iowa, an American state that has been a stronghold of conventional commodity agriculture. Demographic and agricultural histories are drawn on to understand recent food system localization practice that has come to emphasize a definition of “local” that coincides with sub-national state boundaries. The emergence and popularization of the “Iowa-grown banquet meal” and the shifting meaning of “local Iowa food” further illustrate the potential tension between defensiveness and diversity in food system localization.

• An emerging user-led participatory methodology : Mapping impact pathways of urban food system sustainability innovations
  23 novembre 2021, par Mathilde COUDRAY

  This chapter presents the general framework for the URBAL project as well as the main interwoven considerations and approaches that are the backbone of the methodology. Please note that this is an ongoing project and that it has evolved since the chapter has been written. We will point out some changes in the methodology as the chapter proceeds

• Les initiatives citoyennes et leur changement d’échelle
  3 novembre 2021, par Mathilde COUDRAY

  Où l’on constate que le monde d’après s’expérimente déjà aujourd’hui, au travers d’initiatives citoyennes qui se multiplient et inventent de nouvelles façons d’organiser l’alimentation. Et où l’on explore plusieurs voies pour que ces initiatives changent d’échelle et permettent la nécessaire transformation des systèmes alimentaires.

• Jamais seul. Ces microbes qui construisent les plantes, les animaux et les civilisations
  26 octobre 2021, par Mathilde COUDRAY

  Nous savons aujourd’hui que les microbes ne doivent plus seulement être associés aux maladies ou à la décomposition. Au contraire, ils jouent un rôle en tous points essentiel : tous les organismes vivants, végétaux ou animaux, dépendent intimement de microbes qui contribuent à leur nutrition, leur développement, leur immunité ou même leur comportement. Toujours pris dans un réseau d’interactions microbiennes, ces organismes ne sont donc… jamais seuls. (présentation de l’éditeur)

• 19/ Hidden costs and the fair price of our food: between the market, the State and the commons
  15 September 2022, by Mathilde COUDRAY

  Jean-Louis Rastoin, L’Institut Agro Montpellier, France
  Key points The market price of food products reflects only a limited share (between a third and half) of their true cost if we take into account the negative externalities associated with their production, distribution and consumption. These harmful impacts pertain to human health (50% of hidden costs on average), the environment (30%), and the economy (20%). These figures vary due to the territorial diversity of food systems. (...)

• Toutes les vidéos de la JIPAD 2022
  8 avril 2022, par Mathilde COUDRAY
• 2020 / Webinaires - Droit à l’alimentation
  12 novembre 2020, par Mathilde COUDRAY

  Les 9 et 16 décembre 2020 se sont déroulés deux webinaires organisés par la Fondation Daniel et Nina Carasso et la Chaire Unesco Alimentations du monde sur les enjeux actuels de la lutte contre la précarité alimentaire et de l’égalité d’accès à une alimentation durable.

• 2020 Global Nutrition Report
  26 octobre 2021, par Mathilde COUDRAY

  The 2020 Global Nutrition Report looks beyond global and national patterns, revealing significant inequalities in nutrition outcomes within countries and populations. Based on the best-available data, in-depth analysis and expert opinion rooted in evidence, the report identifies critical actions to achieve nutrition equity. Everyone deserves access to healthy, affordable food and quality nutrition care.