Urban Food Actions Platform

Food systems should ensure that enough nutritious food is available for everyone, whether they live in urban or rural areas, and they are poor households. The challenge is to do so while minimizing any harmful impact on the environment. 

This thematic area focuses on efficient and resilient food supply and distribution systems. For instance strengthening the rural-urban food supply chain in order to face and adapt to disruptive events; developing sustainable food transportation and logistics planning in order to reduce carbon emissions by improving alternative fuels or means of transport and thus improve connections with peri-urban and rural nearby areas; strengthening or developing energy efficient municipal public markets including farmers markets, retail and wholesale markets; creating an enabling environment for the informal food system sector and their stakeholders.

Related Resources

Food supply and distribution - Reports & Case Studies
The City Region Food System of Rotterdam is characterised by the paradox of being an international port – a gateway to Europe, particularly for fruit and feed – while at the same time having a small but prolific local food movement that consists of citizens and entrepreneurs who are motivated...
Netherlands (Europe)
2016 - Jan Willem van der Schans, Paul de Graaf
Food supply and distribution - Reports & Case Studies
The food system in the Quito Metropolitan District (DMQ) can be characterised as a mixture of a Food System 1.0 and 2.0. Ecuador’s internal food market has consistently grown over recent years. Food consumption statistics show that fresh and processed food household expenses have grown annually by 3% over recent years...
Ecuador (Latin America and the Caribbean)
2016 - Inigo Arrazola, Nataly Pinto Alvaro, Johanna Renckens, Hector Ballesteros, Patric Hollenstein
Food supply and distribution - Reports & Case Studies
This study on Bristol, UK, is part of joint effort of the RUAF Foundation and the Food Business Knowledge Platform, together with local partners, to contribute to a better understanding of how different types of private sector players can shape/enable the existence of a city region food system (as opposed...
United Kingdom (Europe)
2016 - Joy Carey
Food supply and distribution - Articles
The report further explores the concept of a sustainable and resilient city region food system and addresses some issues in need of further exploration to help advance the debate. By doing so, this study aims to serve as a starting point for enhancing private sector engagement and putting in place...
(Global coverage)
2016 - Marielle Dubbeling, Joy Carey, Katrin Hochberg
Governance and planning, Sustainable diets and nutrition, Social and economic equity, Food supply and distribution - Reports & Case Studies
Urban markets contribute to massive opportunities and benefits. They can play an important role for the sustainable development and revitalization of a city by promoting: job creation and employment, tourism (related to gastronomy traditions), local commerce, healthy life styles, revitalization of public space, social and cultural “services", and an environmental...
France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Romania, Spain (Europe)
2015 - Coll.