Place-based approaches to sustainable food supply chains: scaling socio-technical innovations as enablers for enhancing public sector food procurement

Transforming food systems in the context of climate change, biodiversity loss, soil fertility depletion, water pollution, food insecurity, and diet-related diseases requires the socially just development and implementation of new ideas, practices, or technologies that can address the drawbacks of our 'broken' food system. The current interest in the UK on expanding Dynamic Food Procurement (DFP) and the key role of place-based public food procurement through its significant buying power is increasingly recognised as having the potential to make large-scale changes along food supply chains (from farm to fork), leading to sustainable food system transformation.

This project proposes to leverage place-based public food procurement to drive a shift to more inclusive, sustainable, healthy, diverse and resilient local food systems facilitated by open-source socio-technical innovations including dynamic food procurement, 'market dialogues' and market 'devices' such as group certification. We will conduct four case studies to identify the opportunities for place-based public food procurement, examine the barriers/constraints and challenges, co-design and implement locally driven solutions which will reduce environmental and financial costs of public food procurement while delivering positive economic, social, nutritional, and environmental outcomes. We will co-develop the project with end-users (producers and procurers) to embed impact throughout and will co-produce a range of outputs including an open access web-based tool kit for assessing the sustainability impacts of place-based public sector food procurement, and a multimedia support package to guide the set-up of new networks/partnerships.

Building on direct experience of Open Food Network UK (OFN) as a project partner in facilitating successful pilot studies in Wales and aligned with the National Food Strategy's recommendation for expanding DFP in the UK, the overall aim of this research is to critically evaluate the conditions in which place-based public food procurement networks, utilising open-source socio-technical innovations, can scale to deliver the transformative changes needed for socially just transitions in food systems in different geographical settings within the UK.

It will generate new insights from developing place-based collaborative public sector food procurement partnerships across 4 sites in the UK aimed at promoting community-led local food systems that are environmentally sustainable, economically fair and socially just.

The project will address the following objectives:

Obj1: Identify the opportunities and challenges faced by small-scale producers and public procurers in building place-based public food procurement networks.

Obj2: Identify the characteristics, opportunities and challenges relating to the application and further development of open-source socio-technical innovations for place-based public sector food procurement involving small-scale producers.

Obj3: Critically evaluate the role of place-based governance frameworks in creating an enabling environment for place-based public procurement networks involving small-scale producers.

Obj4: Identify and apply the most appropriate indicators to monitor and communicate the sustainability impacts, climate resilience, and social value of open-source socio-technical innovations for place-based public sector food procurement from small-scale producers.

Obj5: Enhance collaboration between small-scale producers and procurers through open-source socio-technical innovations, market dialogues, and policy recommendations.