Publications
Assessing the circularity of nutrient flows related to the food system in the Okanagan bioregion, BC Canada. Journal Article
Harder, Robin; Giampietro, Mario; Mullinix, Kent; Smukler, Sean
In: Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 174 , pp. 105842, 2021, ISSN: 09213449.
Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: Agriculture, Circularity, Feed and food trade, Food systems, Nutrient flows, System openness
@article{Harder2021,
title = {Assessing the circularity of nutrient flows related to the food system in the Okanagan bioregion, BC Canada.},
author = {Robin Harder and Mario Giampietro and Kent Mullinix and Sean Smukler},
url = {https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0921344921004511},
doi = {10.1016/j.resconrec.2021.105842},
issn = {09213449},
year = {2021},
date = {2021-11-01},
journal = {Resources, Conservation and Recycling},
volume = {174},
pages = {105842},
publisher = {Elsevier},
abstract = {The “circular bioeconomy” is extensively discussed in science and policy, and its implementation in practice is considered to be a panacea for fixing many current sustainability problems. The circular bioeconomy crucially depends on biological and technical processes capable of recycling nutrients in the right mix, at the right pace, and using only renewable energy. The current lack of circularity of nutrient flows is a critical factor that hampers sustainable food and bioeconomy systems. If we are serious about the sustainability of food and bioeconomy systems, we have to develop more robust tools to study (diagnose) and explore (simulate) the factors determining the circularity of nutrient flows. This paper applies a novel analytical framework to assess the circularity of nutrient flows in modern food systems. This framework can help understand the potentialities of proposed changes in relation to reducing nutrient losses and the dependence on nutrients mined from finite deposits. More specifically, in this paper, we illustrate a quantitative assessment of the flows of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium in a case study \textendash the food system of the Okanagan bioregion in BC Canada. Our study suggests that the proposed approach is effective to inform nutrient management policies in bioregional food systems. In particular, an assessment of the openness of nutrient flows flags the importance of managing organic residuals for comprehensive nutrient recovery and reuse \textendash an activity that is still often systematically neglected due to large feed and food imports and the availability of cheap synthetic fertilizers. This type of analysis is essential if we want to develop effective policies for more sustainable management of nutrients in food and bioeconomy systems.},
keywords = {Agriculture, Circularity, Feed and food trade, Food systems, Nutrient flows, System openness},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
The “circular bioeconomy” is extensively discussed in science and policy, and its implementation in practice is considered to be a panacea for fixing many current sustainability problems. The circular bioeconomy crucially depends on biological and technical processes capable of recycling nutrients in the right mix, at the right pace, and using only renewable energy. The current lack of circularity of nutrient flows is a critical factor that hampers sustainable food and bioeconomy systems. If we are serious about the sustainability of food and bioeconomy systems, we have to develop more robust tools to study (diagnose) and explore (simulate) the factors determining the circularity of nutrient flows. This paper applies a novel analytical framework to assess the circularity of nutrient flows in modern food systems. This framework can help understand the potentialities of proposed changes in relation to reducing nutrient losses and the dependence on nutrients mined from finite deposits. More specifically, in this paper, we illustrate a quantitative assessment of the flows of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium in a case study – the food system of the Okanagan bioregion in BC Canada. Our study suggests that the proposed approach is effective to inform nutrient management policies in bioregional food systems. In particular, an assessment of the openness of nutrient flows flags the importance of managing organic residuals for comprehensive nutrient recovery and reuse – an activity that is still often systematically neglected due to large feed and food imports and the availability of cheap synthetic fertilizers. This type of analysis is essential if we want to develop effective policies for more sustainable management of nutrients in food and bioeconomy systems.
The Complexity of Food Systems: Defining Relevant Attributes and Indicators for the Evaluation of Food Supply Chains in Spain Journal Article
Gamboa, Gonzalo; Kovacic, Zora; Masso, Marina Di; Mingorría, Sara; Gomiero, Tiziano; Rivera-Ferré, Marta; Giampietro, Mario
In: Sustainability, 8 (6), pp. 515, 2016, ISSN: 2071-1050.
Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: Food supply chains, Food systems, Integrated assessment, Narratives
@article{Gamboa2016,
title = {The Complexity of Food Systems: Defining Relevant Attributes and Indicators for the Evaluation of Food Supply Chains in Spain},
author = {Gonzalo Gamboa and Zora Kovacic and Marina Di Masso and Sara Mingorr\'{i}a and Tiziano Gomiero and Marta Rivera-Ferr\'{e} and Mario Giampietro},
url = {http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/515},
doi = {10.3390/su8060515},
issn = {2071-1050},
year = {2016},
date = {2016-05-01},
journal = {Sustainability},
volume = {8},
number = {6},
pages = {515},
abstract = {The wide-ranging literature on food systems provides multiple perspectives and world views. Various stakeholders define food and food systems in non-equivalent ways. The perception of the performance of food systems is determined by these specific perspectives, and a wide variety of policies responding to different aims are proposed and implemented accordingly. This paper sets out to demonstrate that the pre-analytical adoption of different narratives about the food system leads to non-equivalent assessments of the performance of food supply chains. In order to do so, we (i) identify a set of relevant narratives on food supply chains in Spanish and Catalan contexts; (ii) identify the pertinent attributes needed to describe and represent food supply chains within the different perspectives or narratives; and (iii) carry out an integrated assessment of three organic tomato supply chains from the different perspectives. In doing so, the paper proposes an analysis of narratives to enable the analyst to characterize the performance of food supply chains from different perspectives and to identify the expected trade-offs of integrated assessment, associating them with the legitimate-but-contrasting views found among the social actors involved.},
keywords = {Food supply chains, Food systems, Integrated assessment, Narratives},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
The wide-ranging literature on food systems provides multiple perspectives and world views. Various stakeholders define food and food systems in non-equivalent ways. The perception of the performance of food systems is determined by these specific perspectives, and a wide variety of policies responding to different aims are proposed and implemented accordingly. This paper sets out to demonstrate that the pre-analytical adoption of different narratives about the food system leads to non-equivalent assessments of the performance of food supply chains. In order to do so, we (i) identify a set of relevant narratives on food supply chains in Spanish and Catalan contexts; (ii) identify the pertinent attributes needed to describe and represent food supply chains within the different perspectives or narratives; and (iii) carry out an integrated assessment of three organic tomato supply chains from the different perspectives. In doing so, the paper proposes an analysis of narratives to enable the analyst to characterize the performance of food supply chains from different perspectives and to identify the expected trade-offs of integrated assessment, associating them with the legitimate-but-contrasting views found among the social actors involved.
AGAUR Grant ID 2017 SGR 230 / Copyright © 2023