Rapid food flow mapping
Tracing the flows and sources of food (food flow analysis) is an important way of identifying food system activities taking place within city region boundaries and getting a first sense of food system vulnerabilities, weaknesses and strengths (for example: the origin and diversity of food supply sources, gaps in local food processing that could offer employment opportunities; parts in the chain where most food waste is generated; types of transport and storage used with highest climate change impacts etc.). As part of the CRFS characterization, a first rapid mapping of food flows is developed using existing available data and selected stakeholder interviews. A further detailed food flow analysis -with quantification of food flows for specific indicators- will be done in a later stage as part of the CRFS Assessment, responding to specific identified priorities (e.g. need for further data collection on food waste; on climate change indicators, etc.)

- Kitwe city region rapid food flows mapping for cabbage
Project tools and examples
Consultative stakeholder workshops
Consultative workshops aim to collect qualitative data and/or come to a multistakeholder agreement on a specific topic. It was used in Lusaka and Colombo to get an estimate of the food flows for key commodities consumed in the city.
In Utrecht a database of regional food actors was compiled by combining records from different, until now, fragmented data-sets. The database includes categories such as: urban agriculture, rural producers, processing, distribution & wholesale, retail and restaurants and catering. Results are presented in an interactive regional food map that can serve as a starting point for further in-depth analysis of food flows in the Utrecht city region.
This table provides the criteria used to determine the key foods in the Greater Golden Horseshoe as part of deciding which foods to study for the food flow mapping and analysis.
This report presents an example of a food flow analysis done in Kesbewa, Sri Lanka in 2012.
Methodological proposal of territorial food supply systems
This methodological proposal is used in Medellin to provide guidelines for analyzing supply systems, with emphasis on the inclusion of family farming.
