• Energy Research

Transitioning agri-food systems towards increased sustainability and resilience requires that attention be paid to sustainable food consumption policies. Policy-making processes often require the engagement and acceptance of key stakeholders. This study analyses stakeholders’ solutions for creating sustainable agri-food systems, through interviews with a broad range of stakeholders including food value chain actors, non-governmental organizations, governmental institutions, research institutions and academic experts. The study draws on 38 in-depth, semi-structured interviews conducted in four European countries: France, Iceland, Italy and the UK, as well as three interviews with high-level EU experts. The interviewees’ solutions were analysed according to a five-category typology of policy tools, encompassing direct activity regulations, and market-based, knowledge-based, governance and strategic policy tools. Most of the identified solutions were located in the strategic tools category, reflecting shared recognition of the need to integrate food policy to achieve long-term goals. Emerging solutions—those which were most commonly identified among the different national contexts—were then used to derive empirically-grounded and more universally applicable recommendations for the advancement of sustainable food consumption policies.

Transitioning agri-food systems towards increased sustainability and resilience requires that attention be paid to sustainable food consumption policies. Policy-making processes often require the engagement and acceptance of key stakeholders. This study analyses stakeholders’ solutions for creating sustainable agri-food systems, through interviews with a broad range of stakeholders including food value chain actors, non-governmental organizations, governmental institutions, research institutions and academic experts. The study draws on 38 in-depth, semi-structured interviews conducted in four European countries: France, Iceland, Italy and the UK, as well as three interviews with high-level EU experts. The interviewees’ solutions were analysed according to a five-category typology of policy tools, encompassing direct activity regulations, and market-based, knowledge-based, governance and strategic policy tools. Most of the identified solutions were located in the strategic tools category, reflecting shared recognition of the need to integrate food policy to achieve long-term goals. Emerging solutions—those which were most commonly identified among the different national contexts—were then used to derive empirically-grounded and more universally applicable recommendations for the advancement of sustainable food consumption policies.

The goals were to facilitate the building of a co-creation and stakeholder platform to engage various value chain stakeholders in participatory manner and interactions with the SUCCESS partners. Through this enable targeted consulting actions (e.g. workshops, focus groups) with relevant actors like the fishermen, aquaculture producers and their associations, and to engage value chain operators driving the market interactions between primary producers, sellers and the consumers, Following is a list of selected sustainable market perspectives from the SUCCESS co-creation work with stakeholders: Different cultural perspectives exist that may motivate stakeholders differently across Europe, i.e. North vs. South European perspectives, and also differences arising from the Common Fishery Policy (CFP) vs. elsewhere in Europe not covered by the CFP. Many policy options must be assessed at the individual case study level (due to heterogeneity). Data collection improvement is considered important (for e.g. labour, capital structure/lack of market oriented and environmental indicators, and more disaggregated data is needed. Technical efficiency is considered important for improving environmentally friendly fishing methods. Imperative to simplify and improve legal frameworks and regulations, e.g. to reduce conflicts between short term and long term issues and overlap of local regional, national, EU terms of reference. Environmental regulation clarity improvement needed, and better information basis required with focus on spatial management considerations, especially in aquaculture. Consider if ecosystem services provided by e.g. carp aquaculture could be promoted as part of Natura and tourism. 7.Labelling for sustainability, origin and quality schemes remains a complicated issue, resulting in label fatigue, consumer segmentation and country differences that can provide negative or positive impacts. Impacts direction relies on informing consumers properly for informed choices, and implementing measures targeting, or supporting Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to provide transparent information for increasing ocean literacy, Such efforts are also considered important at municipality levels, as well as regional and on EU wide level. 8. Producer Organisations and Cooperatives should be promoted Provide incentives and opportunities through EU legislation, e.g. through allocation of user rights, Value chain and market bargain power promotion through measures like business concentration, both via vertical and horizontal integration, Promote initiatives by SMEs on training. 9. The CFP discard ban will require more work on quota allocation modelling to underpin the optimal way forward for the sector. 10.Promote further energy saving technologies and consider a ban on fuel subsidies for the fishing sector. 11. Promote further work on new products and product differentiation measures (like e.g. the Greece and Trapani mussels label, direct-selling and short supply chains etc.). The outcomes from the various stakeholder consultations carried out by the SUCCESS project, and by a final round of focus group meetings were used to prepare this report on preferred sustainable market solutions and an indicative roadmap for implementation of SUCCESS outcomes as perceived by the stakeholders. This includes assessments of impact potential for varying measures and tools developed by the SUCCESS work-packages to present both stakeholder perspectives and the SUCCESS scientific outcomes. This report is delivered as a public summary of the findings from the co-creation work involving stakeholders in the SUCCESS project.

The goals were to facilitate the building of a co-creation and stakeholder platform to engage various value chain stakeholders in participatory manner and interactions with the SUCCESS partners. Through this enable targeted consulting actions (e.g. workshops, focus groups) with relevant actors like the fishermen, aquaculture producers and their associations, and to engage value chain operators driving the market interactions between primary producers, sellers and the consumers, Following is a list of selected sustainable market perspectives from the SUCCESS co-creation work with stakeholders: Different cultural perspectives exist that may motivate stakeholders differently across Europe, i.e. North vs. South European perspectives, and also differences arising from the Common Fishery Policy (CFP) vs. elsewhere in Europe not covered by the CFP. Many policy options must be assessed at the individual case study level (due to heterogeneity). Data collection improvement is considered important (for e.g. labour, capital structure/lack of market oriented and environmental indicators, and more disaggregated data is needed. Technical efficiency is considered important for improving environmentally friendly fishing methods. Imperative to simplify and improve legal frameworks and regulations, e.g. to reduce conflicts between short term and long term issues and overlap of local regional, national, EU terms of reference. Environmental regulation clarity improvement needed, and better information basis required with focus on spatial management considerations, especially in aquaculture. Consider if ecosystem services provided by e.g. carp aquaculture could be promoted as part of Natura and tourism. 7.Labelling for sustainability, origin and quality schemes remains a complicated issue, resulting in label fatigue, consumer segmentation and country differences that can provide negative or positive impacts. Impacts direction relies on informing consumers properly for informed choices, and implementing measures targeting, or supporting Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to provide transparent information for increasing ocean literacy, Such efforts are also considered important at municipality levels, as well as regional and on EU wide level. 8. Producer Organisations and Cooperatives should be promoted Provide incentives and opportunities through EU legislation, e.g. through allocation of user rights, Value chain and market bargain power promotion through measures like business concentration, both via vertical and horizontal integration, Promote initiatives by SMEs on training. 9. The CFP discard ban will require more work on quota allocation modelling to underpin the optimal way forward for the sector. 10.Promote further energy saving technologies and consider a ban on fuel subsidies for the fishing sector. 11. Promote further work on new products and product differentiation measures (like e.g. the Greece and Trapani mussels label, direct-selling and short supply chains etc.). The outcomes from the various stakeholder consultations carried out by the SUCCESS project, and by a final round of focus group meetings were used to prepare this report on preferred sustainable market solutions and an indicative roadmap for implementation of SUCCESS outcomes as perceived by the stakeholders. This includes assessments of impact potential for varying measures and tools developed by the SUCCESS work-packages to present both stakeholder perspectives and the SUCCESS scientific outcomes. This report is delivered as a public summary of the findings from the co-creation work involving stakeholders in the SUCCESS project.

Salmon is the most consumed farmed seafood in the EU and there is no indication that demand will abate. Yet salmon aquaculture’s environmental impacts are significant, and its future is likely to be shaped by demands of increased but at the same time more sustainable production. This study developed an integrated theoretical framework based on the multi-level perspective (MLP) and a global value chain (GVC) governance framework and applied it to the global farmed salmon value chain. The objective was to provide insights on the most likely transition pathway towards sustainability based on industry and expert perspectives. The perceptions on challenges and drivers of change, were gathered through focus groups and in-depth interviews, and fitted to the integrated framework to facilitate the transition pathway analysis. Viewing the qualitative findings in the context of the MLP framework provided information about the current workings of the system, the drivers of change in the socio-technical landscape and niche-innovations and their potential to challenge or enhance the current system and thus indicated possible system transitions. To emphasize the role of industry actors in shaping the future of the salmon value chain, the analysis was strengthened using the GVC model which added information about power relations, signaling the ability of system actors to motivate or resist change. The findings indicate that, due to resistance in the regime and the fact that niche-innovations are not yet sufficiently developed, the farmed salmon value chain will continue to be predominated by traditional sea-based aquaculture but that there will be a gradual shift towards more diversity in terms of production methods in response to landscape pressures. The discussion addresses sustainability challenges and policy implications for the farmed salmon value chain and highlights the need for a food system perspective.

Salmon is the most consumed farmed seafood in the EU and there is no indication that demand will abate. Yet salmon aquaculture’s environmental impacts are significant, and its future is likely to be shaped by demands of increased but at the same time more sustainable production. This study developed an integrated theoretical framework based on the multi-level perspective (MLP) and a global value chain (GVC) governance framework and applied it to the global farmed salmon value chain. The objective was to provide insights on the most likely transition pathway towards sustainability based on industry and expert perspectives. The perceptions on challenges and drivers of change, were gathered through focus groups and in-depth interviews, and fitted to the integrated framework to facilitate the transition pathway analysis. Viewing the qualitative findings in the context of the MLP framework provided information about the current workings of the system, the drivers of change in the socio-technical landscape and niche-innovations and their potential to challenge or enhance the current system and thus indicated possible system transitions. To emphasize the role of industry actors in shaping the future of the salmon value chain, the analysis was strengthened using the GVC model which added information about power relations, signaling the ability of system actors to motivate or resist change. The findings indicate that, due to resistance in the regime and the fact that niche-innovations are not yet sufficiently developed, the farmed salmon value chain will continue to be predominated by traditional sea-based aquaculture but that there will be a gradual shift towards more diversity in terms of production methods in response to landscape pressures. The discussion addresses sustainability challenges and policy implications for the farmed salmon value chain and highlights the need for a food system perspective.