Leverage points for the uptake of organic food production and consumption in the United Kingdom

Abstract

Organic food systems are recognised as an important component in meeting United Nations' (UN) Sustainable Development Goals. A leverage points perspective can help to identify approaches which have the potential to facilitate transformative systemic change towards organic and sustainable farming. Using fuzzy cognitive maps developed from expert stakeholder opinions, we modelled a system of drivers of organic food production and consumption in the United Kingdom, according to the UN Sustainability Assessment of Food and Agriculture systems framework. The most influential concepts in the uptake of organic systems were related to system norms and values and social structures, such as short-term economic thinking, landowner engagement, and relationships with certification bodies. However, in a scenario analysis, organic stakeholders identified relatively shallower leverage points as more likely to change under a sustainable future, resulting in limited systemic change. This demonstrates the need for policies targeting system norms, values and social structures relating to food systems to facilitate the transition to organic and sustainable farming.Short-term economic thinking, landowner engagement with organic farming, and consumers' willingness to pay for organic food are the most influential factors in organic food production and consumption scale-up, according to an analysis combining data from expert workshops and fuzzy cognitive maps.

Published in

Communications earth & environment
2024, Volume: 5, number: 1, article number: 449Publisher: SPRINGERNATURE

SLU Authors

• Smith, Laurence

  • Department of Biosystems and Technology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    
  • University of Reading

UKÄ Subject classification

Social Sciences Interdisciplinary


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-024-01585-3

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/132377