Periodic Reporting for period 3 - FOOD TRAILS (Building pathways towards FOOD 2030-led urban food policies)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2023-10-16 al 2024-10-15
Meeting the challenges of providing European citizens with affordable, safe, and nutritious food and of creating healthier and more sustainable City Region Food Systems raises the need for the development of integrated urban food policies that can engage with the complexity of the food system.
Food Trails is a four-year Horizon 2020 project aiming to transform urban food systems in 11 cities, in the field of the front-running policy framework of FOOD 2030 and of Farm to Fork EU Strategy.
The project is also rooted in the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact (MUFPP). Indeed, the overall objective of the Food Trails project is to translate the Pact's commitments to integrated urban food policies into concrete measurable, and long-term progress toward more resilient, safe, fair, and diverse urban food systems in Europe. 11 EU cities, with 3 universities and 5 international organisations active on food, are co-designing pilot actions as leverage points for FOOD 2030 urban food policies development with an expected impact on the quality of life of 8 million EU citizens.
Each partner city set up a living lab that enables collaboration between local authorities and the wider range of local stakeholders to design food policy actions to empower the community; make the farm-to-fork journey sustainable; promote the reduction of food waste; promote environmentally friendly behavior change and ensure people have healthy and secure diets.
Food Trails facilitated collaboration among cities and researchers to encourage knowledge sharing, replication, and scaling up of best practices. One of the project’s key aims is to strengthen the network of cities committed to changing their food systems to be more sustainable and beneficial. Food Trails aims to achieve this goal by transforming mayors into trendsetters to generate impacts among a wider set of cities.
Based on these goals, Food Trails cities initiated the development of local food strategies, resulting in formal policy documents approved by local governments. These strategies were co-designed through participatory processes involving a wide range of stakeholders. The impact analysis highlighted pilot actions, such as establishing Food Councils or drafting strategies, as pivotal steps for many cities in securing food policy approvals. Cross-cutting managers promoted citizen engagement and guided cities in aligning strategies with FOOD 2030 priorities. Lessons from city exchanges were compiled in a replication handbook, translated into eight languages, and disseminated through partner networks. In its final year, Food Trails prioritised knowledge dissemination through local and international events. Innovative communication strategies, including videos and podcasts, attracted diverse audiences and sparked global interest in sustainable food policies.
Food Trails is a four-year Horizon 2020 project aiming to transform urban food systems in 11 cities, in the field of the front-running policy framework of FOOD 2030 and of Farm to Fork EU Strategy.
The project is also rooted in the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact (MUFPP). Indeed, the overall objective of the Food Trails project is to translate the Pact's commitments to integrated urban food policies into concrete measurable, and long-term progress toward more resilient, safe, fair, and diverse urban food systems in Europe. 11 EU cities, with 3 universities and 5 international organisations active on food, are co-designing pilot actions as leverage points for FOOD 2030 urban food policies development with an expected impact on the quality of life of 8 million EU citizens.
Each partner city set up a living lab that enables collaboration between local authorities and the wider range of local stakeholders to design food policy actions to empower the community; make the farm-to-fork journey sustainable; promote the reduction of food waste; promote environmentally friendly behavior change and ensure people have healthy and secure diets.
Food Trails facilitated collaboration among cities and researchers to encourage knowledge sharing, replication, and scaling up of best practices. One of the project’s key aims is to strengthen the network of cities committed to changing their food systems to be more sustainable and beneficial. Food Trails aims to achieve this goal by transforming mayors into trendsetters to generate impacts among a wider set of cities.
Based on these goals, Food Trails cities initiated the development of local food strategies, resulting in formal policy documents approved by local governments. These strategies were co-designed through participatory processes involving a wide range of stakeholders. The impact analysis highlighted pilot actions, such as establishing Food Councils or drafting strategies, as pivotal steps for many cities in securing food policy approvals. Cross-cutting managers promoted citizen engagement and guided cities in aligning strategies with FOOD 2030 priorities. Lessons from city exchanges were compiled in a replication handbook, translated into eight languages, and disseminated through partner networks. In its final year, Food Trails prioritised knowledge dissemination through local and international events. Innovative communication strategies, including videos and podcasts, attracted diverse audiences and sparked global interest in sustainable food policies.
In the final year, partners concentrated on consolidating the extensive knowledge generated through collaboration among researchers, experts, and city officials. The project produced 18 deliverables, with three flagship outputs—the Final Publication, Replication Handbook, and Crosscutting Managers’ Final Report. Cities finalized 10 formally approved local food strategies through participatory processes involving local stakeholders, including politicians and community representatives. The 31 pilot actions, engaging 174 stakeholders, addressed key themes of the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact (MUFPP).
Researchers played a critical role in implementing a participatory evaluation of the pilots, using theory of change, data collection tools, and self-assessment questionnaires for city officials. These activities culminated in reports documenting progress and assessing the impact of pilots.
Seven policy briefs addressed critical topics such as impact investments, EU Child Guarantee and school meals, stakeholder engagement through food policy councils, and multilevel governance, offering insights and strategies to guide local authorities and policymakers.
Knowledge exchange was organised with bilateral city collaborations, partnerships with 28 cascade cities, and thematic workshops supported by experts, analysed in the replication scientific report. Lessons learned were compiled in a multilingual handbook, and shared across city partners networks.
Events held locally and internationally, such as the Copenhagen conference on public food procurement and the Brussels final conference, showcased urban food policy impacts. The combination of videos and podcasts generated broad interest in food policy topics, involving Think Tank members through webinars, articles, and public events.
Annual and mid-year partner meetings facilitated targeted interactive sessions among cities and partners. The Crosscutting Managers elaborated a final report bridging local political commitment with the broader Food2030 agenda, ensuring cities addressed all thematic priorities holistically.
Food Trails updated its exploitation plan, identifying 12 Key Exploitable Results (KERs), such as developed tools and methodologies. These KERs were analysed for challenges, benefits, and sustainability, and are primed for uptake through cities' networks. This exploitation strategy positions Food Trails' results as a foundation for future urban food policies and broader European food system transformation.
Researchers played a critical role in implementing a participatory evaluation of the pilots, using theory of change, data collection tools, and self-assessment questionnaires for city officials. These activities culminated in reports documenting progress and assessing the impact of pilots.
Seven policy briefs addressed critical topics such as impact investments, EU Child Guarantee and school meals, stakeholder engagement through food policy councils, and multilevel governance, offering insights and strategies to guide local authorities and policymakers.
Knowledge exchange was organised with bilateral city collaborations, partnerships with 28 cascade cities, and thematic workshops supported by experts, analysed in the replication scientific report. Lessons learned were compiled in a multilingual handbook, and shared across city partners networks.
Events held locally and internationally, such as the Copenhagen conference on public food procurement and the Brussels final conference, showcased urban food policy impacts. The combination of videos and podcasts generated broad interest in food policy topics, involving Think Tank members through webinars, articles, and public events.
Annual and mid-year partner meetings facilitated targeted interactive sessions among cities and partners. The Crosscutting Managers elaborated a final report bridging local political commitment with the broader Food2030 agenda, ensuring cities addressed all thematic priorities holistically.
Food Trails updated its exploitation plan, identifying 12 Key Exploitable Results (KERs), such as developed tools and methodologies. These KERs were analysed for challenges, benefits, and sustainability, and are primed for uptake through cities' networks. This exploitation strategy positions Food Trails' results as a foundation for future urban food policies and broader European food system transformation.
Food Trails is positioning cities as central drivers of food system transformation by implementing a city-focused approach that fosters collaboration between local authorities, scientific partners, and stakeholders. This unique model demonstrates how cities, supported by expert organizations, can establish Living Labs, co-design pilot projects, and define urban food policies. By linking local governments with scientific research and stakeholders, the project enables municipalities to build a common pathway toward food policies that are tailored to local contexts and aligned with broader European frameworks like FOOD 2030. This collaborative effort is aimed at exploiting the potential of each city while integrating key European policy priorities.
The project highlights the crucial role of researchers, who, despite coming from diverse backgrounds, share a commitment to addressing the flaws in current food systems and embedding sustainability into resilient urban food systems. Food Trails has established a unique connection between researchers and policymakers, emphasizing the importance of actionable interventions that meet the specific policy needs of the cities while having broader relevance for food system transformation globally. Researchers have not only supported cities in refining their local food systems but have also provided a broader, more transferable understanding of key challenges. Through effective collaborations, researchers have helped cities adapt context-specific solutions for broader replication in other cities, creating a robust research-policy interface that accelerates food system transformation both within and beyond the consortium. Launched under the FOOD 2030 EU framework during Expo 2015 in Milan, Food Trails tackled global urban sustainability challenges through four priorities: Nutrition, Climate, Circularity, and Communities. Four Crosscutting Managers guided cities in integrating these priorities into local practices, ensuring a systemic and balanced approach and helping 11 cities holistically address the co-benefits, fostering comprehensive and integrated food policies.
The project highlights the crucial role of researchers, who, despite coming from diverse backgrounds, share a commitment to addressing the flaws in current food systems and embedding sustainability into resilient urban food systems. Food Trails has established a unique connection between researchers and policymakers, emphasizing the importance of actionable interventions that meet the specific policy needs of the cities while having broader relevance for food system transformation globally. Researchers have not only supported cities in refining their local food systems but have also provided a broader, more transferable understanding of key challenges. Through effective collaborations, researchers have helped cities adapt context-specific solutions for broader replication in other cities, creating a robust research-policy interface that accelerates food system transformation both within and beyond the consortium. Launched under the FOOD 2030 EU framework during Expo 2015 in Milan, Food Trails tackled global urban sustainability challenges through four priorities: Nutrition, Climate, Circularity, and Communities. Four Crosscutting Managers guided cities in integrating these priorities into local practices, ensuring a systemic and balanced approach and helping 11 cities holistically address the co-benefits, fostering comprehensive and integrated food policies.