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Brussels, 30 October - The Food2030 Project’s Family is thrilled to introduce its latest Policy Brief “Long-term Living Lab Support towards Food System Transformation”. This initiative was made possible with the assistance of the European Commission’s Horizon Result Booster Service.

The FOOD2030 Project’s Family, consisting of five Horizon 2020 (H2020) initiatives—FoodE, FoodShift2030, Cities2030, FoodTrials, and Fusilli— focus on coordinating synergistic initiatives to drive innovation in European local food systems, in line with the European Commission’s FOOD 2030 and the Farm to Fork Strategy.

The most recent milestone of this collaboration is the release of the policy brief “Long-term Living Lab Support towards Food System Transformation”.

The Project Family have played a crucial role in establishing Food System Living Labs in over 50 city-regions across 21 countries, which have become essential structures for extending EU funds and initiatives to local communities and governments in a targeted and impactful manner. These labs bring together local stakeholders involved in food system innovation, offering place-based solutions to national and global challenges in our food system.

To ensure the continued success of the Food System Living Labs (FSLL) beyond the lifespan of individual projects, the paper provides policymakers of the European Commission, national governments and municipal leaders with recommendationsfocusing on prioritising FSLLs long term funding and guidelines to support them in implementing effective strategies to expand the impact of FSLLs.

The document proposes a systemic shift in food systems, supported by financial frameworks, funding strategies, and the recognition of the broader societal value of FSLLs as epicentres for coordination, knowledge exchange, and transformative learning.

The document was launched as part of the “FoodSHIFT2030 Policy Conference on Citizen-driven transformation of the EU Food System” (Brussels on October 26); the first closing event of the Project Family. Indeed, the overall theme of the paper is how to ensure that the impact achieved by the Food System Living Labs (FSLL) continues beyond the projects’ lifetime.

About Food 2030 Project Family 

Fifty cities across Europe are involved in five EU Horizon-funded projects investing over €50 million by 2024 to innovate local food systems. FoodSHIFT 2030, FOODE, Food Trails, Cities 2030 and FUSILLI constitute the “EU FOOD 2030 Project Family” and collaborate towards the sustainable transformation of the European food system aligned with the European Commission’s FOOD 2030 and Farm to Fork Strategy.

The City of Romainville, along with all the regional actors dedicated to the transition towards more sustainable and resilient urban food systems, invites you to join the inaugural edition of “Romainville Comestible”, the festival of gastronomic transitions, taking place in Romainville, France from 23 to 29 September. This event promises to bring participants all together to share collective, delightful, and tasty moments!

During the festival, it will be possible to explore the local producer and culinary creator market, embark on a gastronomic “treasure hunt” organised by local retailers, and indulge in a food court showcasing the creations of the 12 culinary projects from Brigade’23. To promote the sustainable food transition, the festival will feature a wide array of workshops, including Ayurvedic cooking with Boom’in Ayurveda, plant-based pastry making with Toupet, Lacto-fermentation with the Fervent Ferment collective, home vegetable preservation with Micro-Ressources, discovering edible wild plants with Jardin e(s)t la recette, and gourmet vegan cooking with Exquis. Participants will also have the chance to attend the first municipal honey production with Les Ruchers de Romainville.

The Maryse Bastié school group cafeteria will also join the festival by developing “special festival” thematic menus prepared by the school chef and the students. Additionally, they will host an afternoon activity focused on food with leisure centres. On Saturday, a “recup’ chef.fe.s” cooking competition, organised by Cheffes, will raise awareness about waste reduction and anti-waste cooking.

The festival will include moments of reflection and cultural meetings as well. The Maison de la Philo organises two workshops for young and old people, while Cheffes welcomes participants on Sunday for a “Brunch & Gestural Conference” about the tasty revolution, presented by the Les Pieds dans le Plat collective, which assisted the city in establishing the school kitchen at Maryse Bastié. An opportunity to exchange ideas and understand how a population adapts and how the social food space transforms during times of conflict awaits during the meeting with the artists Juliette Turrini and Scott A. Laurent about the exhibition “Food in Times of War”, created following their visits to Ukraine since 2022.

During the festival, the 4th consultation workshop “Champ des possibles” will be held with the Gagarine residents to discuss the new food transformation space to be established in the neighbourhood in 2024.

The food transition can only be achieved through solidarity. In this respect, an exciting treasure hunt, organised by the Baluchon incubator, will allow a group of social benefit recipients in career transition to explore iconic culinary businesses in Romainville.

Art in all its forms will not be overlooked: there will be gastronomic tours of the Pavilion by the Bolides Collective, eco-theatre workshops on food by the Les Arborescent.e.s Company, and a slam poetry workshop with the Sporting Club de Poésie.

Finally, Opera Apéro and the Grande Parade Métèque will take the stage on two evenings during the festival days. On Wednesday 27 September, at the CasseDalle Garden, the opera company will organise an Opera Bouffe et Malbouffe, a preview of the new performance scheduled for May at the Pavilion. The actors will be supported by a “Malbouffe resident” choir, formed during a cooking-singing workshop at the Marcel Cachin Community Centre. The evening will end with the Opera Apéro, as usual, featuring a festive and participatory meal, including a recipe contest hosted by the artists. As the grand finale of the festival, the Grande Parade Métèque presents the Café Métèque Convivial at the CasseDalle garden, a musical and storytelling gathering featuring the sharing of dishes, stories, memories, and cultures.

See the full programme here

Meet the grassroots organisations around the world that are driving positive social and environmental change in their cities 

Four prize winners have been announced for the Edible Cities Network Awards, a programme celebrating urban food initiatives around the world that are creating meaningful change in their local food systems. Winners are awarded a funded place at the Edible Cities Network Conference in Barcelona in March 2023, where their projects will be presented and they will get the chance to connect with other sustainability pioneers. The winners were chosen by a jury of food systems and green city practitioners, as well as through a peer-to-peer voting process. Applications were received from 18 different countries across 4 continents.

Winner of Most Innovative Individual Action – CUIB, Romania

Operating as a plant-based bistro and a community-space, CUIB is a hub for sustainability in Romania’s second-biggest city, Iași. CUIB takes a holistic approach to sustainability, focussing upon nature, society, and economy. The hub operates a membership system that allows for a solidarity-model approach, its menu is currently 90% locally-grown menu, they use saved food wherever they can, food waste is turned into compost for growing new crops, free meals are offered to vulnerable communities, and it is making plans to go fully zero-waste.

Winner of Most Innovative Individual Action (Local Hero) – Trees de Bruyne, Belgium

Trees de Bruyne founded the NGO ‘bark.today’ at the beginning of 2022. With her Jummy Jungle in the town center of Aalst in Belgium, she was at the heart of helping it grow into a thriving food forest that has over 360 participants. ‘Nature-connectedness’ drives the project, which includes mindfulness, storytelling, creative endeavours, and nature-based education within the food forest, creating new connections and long-lasting knowledge about urban food within the city of Aalst and across Belgium.

Winner of Most Innovative Social Engagement Process – The Centre of the Earth, Greece

‘The Centre of the Earth’ is an urban farm that has been operating for over 10 years in Athens. Its goal is local mitigation and adaptation to climate change through sustainable food production, taking an approach that focusses upon sharing agroecological and organic growing skills – with a particular focus on catering to vulnerable groups. Activities are co-designed and adjusted in conversation with participants, and to date over 70,000 adults and 50,000 children have participated in educational activities on the farm.

Winner of Best overall Edible City Approach – Edible City Cologne, Germany

Edible City Cologne is a citywide strategy working to make Cologne more ‘edible’. Its basis is an Edible City Action Plan which sets out how the city can improve its food system. This developed as a participatory project that became part of the city’s political agenda, and includes a programme covering edible public green spaces, community gardens, urban orchards, and more. As well as public spaces, they also focus upon bringing gardens into schools, housing associations, and companies.

Speaking of her experience on the expert panel, Vic Borrill from the UK’s Brighton & Hove Food Partnership commented that: ‘Sustainability is about more than just about ecology – it’s about making sure that you’re giving people equal opportunities to participate, and looking at ways to make your model financially sustainable so that it can continue to make long-term impact. The winners we have chosen for this year’s awards are all examples of holistic approaches to sustainability, and we’re delighted to celebrate them internationally’

Laura Martinez, from the Norwegian think-and-do-tank Nabolagshager, added ‘given that 56% of the world’s population currently lives in cities, and an estimated 7 out of 10 people worldwide will be living in cities by 2050, there is a pressing need to make our cities more sustainable, livable and healthier. Creating spaces for food growing and food production is an important step towards this goal, and this year’s award-winners play their part in doing that’.

To find out more about the work of the Edible Cities Network, or to register to attend the annual conference in March, visit the Edible Cities Network website at https://www.edicitnet.com/.

About the Edible Cities Network

The Edible Cities Network is a global network of individuals and organisations, working together to make our cities more socially and environmentally resilient through urban food system innovation – everything that makes our cities more ‘edible’. EdiCitNet has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 776665

The Edible Cities Network project is coordinated by Humboldt Universität zu Berlin in Berlin, Germany. The core of the project is a network of urban communities in 11 cities across Europe, Africa, Latin America and East Asia, supported by local residents, city administrations, NGOs, businesses and research organisations across the globe.

For further information about the Edible Cities Network worldwide, contact: edicitnet-coordinator@eurtd.com

From 10 to 14 January 2023, another MyLocalFoodE festival took place in Bologna, Italy. For several days, many scientific and cultural events focused on sustainable food production systems, greenery, and urban gardens were organised in Bologna’s beautiful historical buildings and green urban areas. The festival offered visitors photo exhibitions, panel discussions, workshops and much more.

The festival involved children, students, families, and the elderly in the various activities organised in different spots of Bologna, such as the Greenhouses of the Gardens of Margherita, Salus Space, a modern multifunctional space for collaborative living and social gardening, and the University of Bologna’s experimental Vertical Farm (AlmaVFarm).

During the MyLocalFoodE festival, the exhibition “Proiezioni ORTOgonali” [Orthogonal Projections] took place in the Sala della Manica Lunga of the historical Palazzo d’Accursio. As part of this multidisciplinary exhibition, video and photography shows, a selection of historical maps showing the location of Bologna’s urban gardens, an audio performance of natural sounds, and an exhibition of medicinal vegetable species were organised. The purpose of Proiezioni ORTOgonali was to help citizens reflect on the importance of urban gardens, bringing to light their key role in protecting urban ecosystems, and their social, educational, and therapeutic functions, without omitting their cultural and historical features.

The festival was a success in terms of participation and engagement, showing the interest of the citizens of Bologna in the great beauty of their urban gardens. As urban food systems will be increasingly important in the future of cities worldwide, FoodE and its partners will continue to organise events across Europe to spread the word about the environmental and social benefits which they can bring to our society.

On 25 January 2023, this question has been answered during a MyLocalFoodE event in Lansingerland. Hosted by Wageningen University & Research (WUR) and the municipality of Lansingerland (the Netherlands), participating children (aged 6 to 12) learned about greenhouse horticulture. The event “Where does our food come from” was aimed at children and their parents to inform them about fruit- and vegetable production in controlled environments.

Home of horti science

Lansingerland, located in the Province of South-Holland, is the second largest greenhouse horticulture municipality in the Netherlands (after Westland). The municipality accounts for about 64,000 inhabitants and hosts about 789 hectares of greenhouses, growing 54% of vegetables and 56% of ornamental plants. The clustering of innovative companies makes Lansingerland a strong knowledge network for the entire greenhouse horticulture sector. Within this so-called Horti Science Park, FoodE partner WUR is an active member and research organization.

MyLocal…Greenhouse

During the MyLocalFoodE event, participants learned first-hand how fruit and vegetables are produced in greenhouses. In addition, they were informed about innovative and environmentally sustainable systems and how these contribute to current and future challenges, such as climate change. The tour of the facility started in the winter-light greenhouse. During winter season, 10% more sunlight is led in, leading to a 10% increase of cucumber production. Afterwards, the group visited KAS2030, a greenhouse demonstrating the growth of gerbera’s in a fossil-free and emission-free environment. Finally, in the EFTE greenhouse, children learned how strawberries grow under a durable plastic (EFTE) material, with has interesting properties compared to common glass.

And the winner is…

A total of 85 participants handed in their FoodE drawing. After a word from Eric Poot (WR) the winner of the coloring competition was announced. Although only one participant won an iPad, nobody left empty-handed. All participants received locally grown gerbera’s and a box of fresh blackberries.

Due to its great success, the event will be held again. Let’s spread interest and enthusiasm for greenhouse horticulture!

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Get enLIGHTened

On 1 February 2023, Wageningen University & Research (WUR) and Delphy Improvement Centre organized a light event within the program “Kas als Energiebron”. The “Kas als Energiebron” is a joint program of the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality and Greenhouse Horticulture Netherlands. The main purpose of the event was to promote the exchange and expertise between the research- and business sector and discuss the challenges of our time, and related developments and innovations to tackle these. During the event, a total of 200 participants were enlightened with the latest research and developments in (LED) lightning through workshops, discussions and guided tours through the facilities of Delphy and WUR.

Vertical Farm

At WUR Glasshouse horticulture, the participants were guided along different trials, including the Vertical Farm. The Vertical Farm was built in recent years and constitutes one of the pilot case studies within the FoodE project. It serves as research, educational and demonstrational centre. Thanks to the full climate control, the vertical farm is an optimal research tool and is used for the investigation of production recipes, light spectrum, new crops and many other topics. This research is (also) intended to unveil new insights for horticulture in greenhouses. During the tour, the facility, the equipment (and the current crops: hop and lettuce) were shown to the participants. An overview of the projects carried out so far as part of FoodE as well as other projects was given. Since 2020, many different crops have been grown in the high-wire and layered cells such as lettuce, basil, dwarf tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, soybeans, strawberries.

The latest General Assembly for FoodE was held on 27-28 October on the sunny island of Tenerife.

On the first day, all partners came together to discuss the status of the project implementation, challenges faced along the way and solutions to tackle these. Presentations were combined with stimulating workshops.

Partners gathered in different groups to talk about what would be the perfect scenario for developing local food initiatives from a social, economic, technological, and innovative perspective. Together we came up with new insights and solutions for the changing world and its food systems. Finally, there was a training on advocacy in which partner projects learned to identify their stakeholders and how to convince them through a proactive communication strategy.

In addition to the content part, our partners in Tenerife, the Institute of Social Research and Tourism (ISTUR) at the University of La Laguna (ULL) organised a local wine tasting for the consortium members on a vineyard. As the guide said: “Without wine, there is no happiness in the world!” Next to the vineyard, a piece of land was allocated for growing local products used afterwards in the adjoining restaurant. A wonderful symbiosis fully in harmony with the values of FoodE based on locally produced and consumed food, short supply chains and sustainability mindset.

On the next day, consortium members visited the local tuna fishery Islatuna where they had the opportunity to explore the fascinating world of tuna. Did you know that a tunas can weigh up to 250 kilos and that they are hand-fished up to 60 kilos? To avoid overconsumption, Islatuna does not use nets.

The visit to the fishery was followed by a boat trip which was marked by the sighting of cetaceans. Since the pandemic, the population of mammals has grown. 

Partners are looking forward to meeting again for the next General Assembly which will take place in Paris!

On Friday, 18 November 2022, the Minister of Justice, Dr Dominika Švarc Pipan, together with the State Secretary, Dr Igor Šoltes, and her team visited the Ig Prison near the Slovenian capital, Ljubljana for the award ceremony of FoodE pilot project “Prison Honey”.

Prison Honey

FoodE pilot project Prison Honey, which is a part of Horizons 2020 EU consortium, has been running in cooperation with the Prison Administration of the Republic of Slovenia in the Open ward of the men’s prison Ig since 2020. The project aims to raise awareness about the importance of bees and other pollinators for the environment and at the same time to empower incarcerated persons through practical beekeeping training course.

Visit from the ministry 

In the open ward of the men’s prison, the head of the ward, Hermina Androjna, together with Gorazd Trušnovec and Franc Petrovčič from the Urban Beekeepers’ Association of Slovenia, presented the FoodE pilot project “Prison Honey” to the Minister and her team. There, Trušnovec and Petrovčič pointed out that “the project is unique in the European area and that the experience of participating in the project has been very positive for the Association as well. It has been a learning process for all of them.” The uniqueness of the project has also gained the attention of a well-known Slovenian media outlet.

During the presentation, the co-mentors expressed their satisfaction “that it is nice to work with people who show an interest in beekeeping and are visibly progressing from week to week.” In two years, 25 convicts have been actively involved in the Prison Honey project, and some of them are already working independently as beekeepers after their release.

Award ceremony

At the end of the meeting, the Minister, Dr Dominika Švarc Pipan, presented the convicted prisoner, who had actively participated in the project, a diploma for completed beekeeping training. As a token of appreciation, the Minister received, a jar of honey extracted from the hives in the Ig prison in return.

From 9 to 12 June, FoodE and its project partners participated in the New European Bauhaus (NEB) Festival and introduced European citizens into the world of local food initiatives and sustainable urban agriculture. During the Festival, FoodE directly engaged with visitors, informed them about examples of sustainable City/Region Food Systems and organised several workshops.

The Festival

Brussels and many other locations across Europe hosted the NEB Festival and brought together the innovative and vibrant projects that shape the sustainable, aesthetic, and inclusive future of Europe. The Festival consisted of virtual and live artistic performances, conferences, exhibitions, and seminars. Together they embodied the New European Bauhaus values of beauty, sustainability and togetherness, and their power to address societal challenges.

The programme of the Festival revolved around three formats: the Fair, the Fest, and the Forum.

The Fair entailed a live exhibition across Brussels that showcased current and future projects, along with opportunities to meet, interact and exchange ideas, bringing together different actors who are enthusiastic about getting involved.

The Fest consisted of a live cultural programme with a range of performances.

The Forum included a series of debates building on key themes of the NEB (green transition, architecture, R&I, culture, education, regional development, etc.), ensuring a well-balanced mix of policy discussions and innovative participatory formats.

FoodE’s mobile booth and workshops 

As part of a fleet of 60 Mobile Exhibition booths, FoodE was able to directly engage with the public in Brussels at four different locations: Place de la Musique, Mont des Arts, Place de Brouckère, Marche aux Poissons. Visitors were able to learn more about sustainable food production systems and FoodE pilots from across the EU. In addition, two FoodE partners - the University of Bologna and the University of Naples - organised workshops:

On Friday 10 June and Saturday 11 June, Michele D’Ostuni from the University of Bologna, hosted a workshop “A New Policy Framework for the Development of Integrated Urban Agriculture (UA) Planning”. In this workshop, FoodE explained how a new policy framework can help municipalities and regions to foster UA planning process in EU cities.

On Sunday 12 June, Giuseppe Carlo Modarelli from the University of Naples held a workshop “Aquaponics as a means to produce food in urban environment?. Aquaponics is a sustainable production technique getting traction worldwide. It relies on the fish feed as the only input to produce both fish and vegetables thanks to bacteria’s beneficial action. In the workshop, the main features (system components, species use) regarding aquaponics were discussed, as well as the main implication for our City/Regions Food Systems.

The New European Bauhaus

The NEB initiative was initiated by the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen in her 2020 State of the Union speech. Inspired by the German Bauhaus movement of the interwar period, which combined functionality with aesthetic in its quest for design, the NEB aims to connect the European Green Deal to people’s living spaces and experiences. By creating bridges between different backgrounds, cutting across disciplines, and building on participation at all levels, the NEB inspires a movement to facilitate and steer the transformation of our societies along with sustainability, aesthetics, and inclusion.

MyLocalFoodE is the initiative of EU-Horizon2020 project FoodE to promote the dissemination of sustainable urban agriculture practices across the European continent. The objective is to raise awareness for local, sustainable and resilient citizen-led food system initiatives. To bring people closer to the benefits and knowledge of these initiatives, several events across Germany are organised. The time and date in Soest and Dortmund are yet to be determined.

Berlin

On the 11th and 12th of June 2022 the ‘Long Day of CityNature’ is planned. This event presents the living nature of the city region of Berlin and offers visitors hands-on action focusing on biodiversity in city regions. Participants will learn a lot about greenhouses, water, and recycling (click here for information and registration). 

On the 27th of June until the 1st of July 2022 ‘Visiting the Water House’ takes place where participants can visit the so-called `Water House´ from our partner institute Nolde & Partner. 

On the 2nd of July 2022 the ‘Long Night of Science’ will take place in Berlin and Potsdam. From 5PM to midnight, scientific and science-related institutions invite visitors to more than 2.000 events, readings, lectures, and performances. The ILS team will be present with exhibitions and lectures at the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin (click here for more information about the program). 

Soest

An informative online workshop is organised in Soest, dealing with city adjustment strategies for farmers in the fringe of the cities. The workshop will convey the theoretic/ scientific explanations of business models and sucess factors for farms in city regions. Moreover well established farmers will present their business model and adjustment strategies as practical example.

Dortmund

The event in Dortmund will be about renaturation of cities in the region of Ruhr metropolitan area. The region is characterised by its densely populated city and former coal industry. With support of the EU-Horizon proGIreg project, a project aiming to improve the life quality of the people and strengthening green infrastructure, an urban farm is under construction at the Hansa coking plant industrial monument. The opening event will take place here with a guided tour for children. Interested citizens will be presented an innovative way of growing plants. The farm at Hansa will combines fish and plant cultivation in the form of an aquaponic.

MyLocalFoodE is the initiative of FoodE to promote the dissemination of sustainable urban agriculture practices across the European continent. In the context of MyLocalFoodE initiative, from 23 to 26 May 2022, the Institute of Social Research and Tourism (ISTUR) at the University of La Laguna (ULL) organises a series of events on the Spanish island of Tenerife to teach its students more about local fish production and consumption and to permanently introduce local tuna into the menu of the University canteens.

Every year the world harvests more than 7 million metric tons of tuna and tuna-like species, accounting for about 20 percent of the value of all marine captured fisheries. This is no surprise considering that tuna is rich in omega-3, minerals, protein, and vitamin B12, among other benefits.

MyLocalFoodE event in Tenerife will educate ULL students about the sustainability and health benefits of tuna and will introduce local fish in University canteens.

On May 17th, the event will be announced by Presidents of the Cabildo and ULL. Before the festival ISTUR will organize a training session with a renowned chef focused on the University canteens, cooks and managers, involving also other local actors. Related to the festival, the ULL, together with partners, will organise a video competition on local fish recipes, that will end after summer. During the event, students and staff will be able to enjoy tasting menus at the university canteens.

The goal of the event is to educate young students about the local treasure – tuna and introduce local tuna to the menu of the University. Click here for more information and to visit the event page!

2021 was, despite the pandemic, a good year for the Urban Beekeepers’ Association of Slovenia. The Association has been contributing to the development and promotion of urban beekeeping for more than eight years. In doing so, the association aims to contribute to the quality of life in the city and the development of the urban environment. 

The association’s annual review shows that 2021 consisted of many highlights. For example, the association started with the Honey Cell project. In this project, which is part of the broader FoodE project, the association is cooperating with prisoners from Ljubljana. The project not only provides more knowledge on how to make cities self-sufficient, but also contributes to the resocialisation and reintegration of prisoners into society. For the Bee Cell project, students from the Faculty of Design in Ljubljana created several designs. These designs were well received and even won an award from the Designers Society of Slovenia.

In April 2021, the association celebrated ten years of beehives on the roof of the Cankarjev Dom Cultural and Congress Centre in the centre of Ljubljana. The association is also engaged with innovation. One of its members, Damir Škraban, has developed a digital scale for beehives. This allows beekeepers to check the weight and condition of the bee colony at any time of the day. The scales are already being used in several European countries. Several members of the Urban Beekeepers’ Association have helped Škraban in the testing phase of this innovation.

The winter in Slovenia was quite warm, while the length was freezing and there was a lot of rain. On 6 April, President Gorazd Trušnovec had to rescue a swarm of bees from the snow. A report of this can be found on the website. In May 2021, the Museum of Apiculture in Radovljica reopened. It also includes a permanent exhibition on Urban Beekeeping. There have also been developments in the scientific field in recent years. In June 2021, Master’s student Urška Oblak published the first dissertation on urban beekeeping in Slovenia.

The second half of 2021 also saw some great developments. Chef Janez Bratovž, who is also called the father of modern Slovene cuisine, has included a description of urban beekeeping in Ljubljana in his English book on Slovenian cuisine. The Supreme State Auditor, Mr Samo Jereb, has also placed bees from Slovenia in the European Court of Auditors in Luxenburg. Finally, a relaxation of the corona rules made it possible to continue with the second year of the course in brewing beer with honey.

It is important that people in a city do not lose touch with how we get food on the table and realize that our current lifestyle puts a heavy strain on natural resources and the earth. The Urban Beekeepers’ Association of Slovenia has plenty of plans and ambitions even in 2022 to contribute to biodiversity, improve life in cities and empower vulnerable groups.

On 17 February 2022, FoodE moderated the grand finale of the international student challenge Urban Farm 2022. The yearly competition aims to find the most sustainable environmental strategy by integrating a wide range of disciplines: from agriculture to economics, engineering, and social sciences. This year, student teams presented their urban agriculture project proposals for the European cities of Stockholm (Sweden) and Bologna (Italy). The winning teams received a monetary prize of €4000 euros. A multidisciplinary jury, consisting of international experts and scientists, evaluated the proposals based on climate management, water and mineral strategies, pest management, and enabling forms of employment for disadvantaged workers.

Increasing inclusivity in Stockholm

The first area, Solberga, is about 1700 square meters and located south-west of Stockholm. It is in need for redevelopment to make it more welcoming and inclusive. Therefore, the focal point in the jury evaluations is its social dimension. In addition, the redevelopment should blend in with the surroundings, include support for gardening, and reuse existing elements of the garden as much as possible. Three project proposals were assessed by the jury. The winning team for this area is Greenius (73 points) consisting of five students from UniLaSalle. Their project is called Grön Gård and includes a step-based idea, adaptable to budgets and resident’s needs. The team was closely followed by Urban Transformers (71 points) from the University of Bologna and Venice. They distinguished themselves by connecting digital and natural environments.

A space for collaboration in Bologna

The second area, located in Bologna, is Serre of Giardini Margherita and has the size of about 2100 square meters. The aim is to redevelop this area to strengthen collaboration between people from different disciplines with respect to climate change and sustainability. The final proposal should be a space suited for events (debates, conferences, workshops), outdoor education, coworking, and a concept store. Seven project proposals were assessed. The winning team for this area is Green Spot with 79 points. This team consists of students from Cairo University, University of Bologna, and the Catholic University of Milan. Green Spot managed to win the online voting, giving them a significantly higher score.

By bringing together universities, research institutes, SMEs, NGOs, and city councils, FoodE supports new initiatives to combat food security issues while fighting social injustice and helping the local economy.

In the early 2000s, beekeepers all around the world noticed a huge increase in the loss of honeybee colonies, with approximately 25-30% of them dying each year. The disappearance of honeybees entails more than just a lack of honey. They serve an important part in our ecosystem. A world without bees will have an impact on every area of our lives: plants rely on bees to breed, insects depend on plants for food and shelter, small animals need insects for food, and so on.

Many initiatives throughout the world are attempting to rescue bees and promote sustainable beekeeping practices, one of which is the Local Buzz Andelsbirøkterlag: Community Supported Beekeeping – a project by FoodE pilot Nabolagshager. Local Buzz Andelsbirøkterlag was founded by Idil Akdos in 2021 in Oslo, Norway. The initiative aims to build a community around sustainable beekeeping and honey production. 

The idea behind the Local Buzz is to include as many people from the community as possible in the process of saving honeybees. Interested participants can become co-owners of a beehive, which will be taken care by experienced beekeepers. Local Buzz also offers regular hive inspections and workshops for those who want to learn more about bees and get actively involved in the process of beekeeping. At the end of the season, participants will can enjoy honey!

The Community Supporting Beekeeping scheme is very new and unexplored, yet it is an important step towards rescuing bees. FoodE and Nabolagshager invite you to join the Local Buzz and save the bees together with your community. 

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Food and the Agriculture Organization (FAO) have been working on a technical cooperation package to support the agribusiness sector during the COVID-19 crisis, including a work area on Urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture. With more than 80 percent of food projected to be consumed in expanding cities by 2050, the need of shifting food production to urban areas is growing. But challenges multiply at the same pace. 

To identify the promising areas for investment in urban and peri-urban agriculture, highlighting technologies, emerging business models and their feasibility, as well as main opportunities and risks, FAO conducted a global study that captured the current state of urban and peri-urban farming and initiated a series of online events on the topic. More than 500 market players and influencers – from both the public and private sectors – including farming companies, technology providers, research centres, real estate investors, retailers and farmers’ associations, have already been identified globally and engaged in this newly established networking platform. 

After a successful launching event in November 2021, FAO and EBRD hosted on 17 December the second E-dialogue „Urban agriculture for circular cities: Space and logistic opportunities“ that gathered 130 participants from 40 countries, interested to learn more and exchange experience and insights in successful urban farming policies and initiatives. This was a unique opportunity for all to hear the voice of municipalities already engaged in urban farming such as Paris, Barcelona, Milano, Istanbul, Budapest, Sofia, Singapore, Beijing, Johannesburg, Washington, Montreal and many others, representing the five continents. Participants discussed the policies and regulation changes that enable public and private investments in urban agriculture and how the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainability are affected. After the opening remarks from EBRD and FAO representatives, project partners from the University of Bologna and academic institutions from Germany, Netherland, France, Spain, Hungary and Greece, moderated separated interactive discussions of participants with representatives of municipalities in four breakout rooms: Social Urban and Peri-Urban farming, Rooftop Agriculture, Agricultural parks and Vertical farming. Here participants discussed and analyzed how and to what extent local institutions and their administrations are ready to embrace commercial Urban Agriculture based on the latest technologies, and what is needed to create an enabling environment for investments.

The event was hosted by the land scape and urban horticulture international conference and the International Society for Horticulture Science, and organized in cooperation the European H2020 project Food Systems in European Cities (FoodE) and in collaboration with the sister actions “Fostering the Urban food System Transformation through Innovative Living Labs Implementation (FUSILLI)”, “Co-creating resIlient and susTaInable food systEms towardS FOOD2030 (Cities2030)”, “Building pathways towards FOOD 2030-led urban food policies (FOOD TRAILS)”, “Food System Hubs Innovating towards Fast Transition by 2030 (FoodShift2030)”and “FOOD and Local, Agricultural and Nutritional Diversity (FoodLand)”.

The urban farming is obviously gaining momentum and its active community is already nominating topics for the 2022 FAO-EBRD e-dialogues, to open up debates and shine a light on the potential pathways towards urbanizing food production.

On 18 December 2021, the FoodE partner the Urban Beekeepers Association of Slovenia (Društvo Urbani čebelar), in cooperation with the Rog Centre and platform ‘’Scientists Against Plastics’’, will organise a workshop for children about molecular candies. In line with the main objective of FoodE, they will raise the awareness of participants about urban honey and the production of sustainable packages. The workshop revolves around learning by doing and tasting. 

In the city center of Ljubljana, the Molecular Sugar Cookies Workshop will be organised for children between the age of 6 to 12. Young participants will add natural colours and flavors to the biopolymers along with sweets and honey treats. This way, children will learn about new types of bioplastics which can be eaten as they are completely natural. The aim of the workshop is thus to teach children how to build an environmentally friendly future without harmful plastics. 

Urbani čebelar brings together individuals working in the field of beekeeping, bee tourism, environmental protection, agriculture, biotechnology, culture, (landscape) architecture and design, environmental management, and any related fields in Ljubljana and Slovenia. Their goal is to develop and promote urban beekeeping as an activity that contributes to the protection and growth of the urban environment and enables the quality of living.

Are you interested to join their workshop as well? Please register via the link below and enjoy the magical experience of molecular cuisine.

FB event: Click here

Link and registration: Click here

On 6 and 7 November, the Institute of Social Research and Tourism of the University of Laguna, part of theMacarofood project, organised seminars about small-scale fisheries and local markets in Tenerife, Spain. The seminar touched upon the valorisation of marine products in Macronesia, a group of islands in the Atlantic Ocean. The seminar demonstrated the importance of (local) artisanal fishing for the improvement of one’s health and the conservation of the environment.

The goal of the Macarofood two-day seminar was to share knowledge about tourism, gastronomy, and provide professional training. The seminar was divided into four themes:

• A social and economic evaluation of the value chain of marine products.
• The progress of building a Macronesian alliance in the field of artisanal fishing. 
• The inclusion of women in the marine sector and its importance.
• The results of the project of Macronesian markets for local fisheries and products.

On the last day of the seminar, the ECOTUNIDOS initiative was organised in collaboration with several schools in Tenerife. During this event, several activities were carried out and future projects were presented. One of the activities included an open discussion on the benefits of fresh food in school canteens. A fresh fish producer and several schools shared their vision on the importance of fresh fish in school canteens. To illustrate their opinion, they organized workshops for all attendees.  

The workshop with researchers, cooks and representatives of Islatunainvolved practical training in recipes with local fish:

https://youtu.be/wzk5RxVBWkI

Researcher Susana Toboso-Chavero from the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology (ICTA-UAB), in collaboration with the research group Sostenpira defended her thesis on “Integrating the food, energy and water nexus on urban rooftops”.

The study is focused on sustainable urban strategies. These strategies cover many different fields and are key to transforming cities into healthier, fairer, and greener sites. Cities are often based on a linear economy system, and three of the most essential resources required in urban areas are food, energy and water. Hence, cities must find circular solutions, closing loops of energy and materials, and avoiding the generation of waste and emissions. One of these circular solutions is the use of underutilized rooftops to implement the production of vegetables, energy or rainwater harvesting i.e. the Roof Mosaic approach named by authors. 

They advised to set up different pilot projects in different urban forms and types of residents, aiming to monitor and test the Roof Mosaic and the inclusion of all stakeholders in the design of urban strategies to match their preferences and needs with effective climate change solutions in cities. Pilot projects can help to bridge between the societal and political support for urban farming. 

The thesis was under the supervision of Professor Xavier Gabarrell, Professor Gara Villalba and Dr. Cristina Madrid-López. The evaluation committee was composed of Professor Francesco Orsini, Dr. Johannes Langemeyer and Dr. Jorge Sierra-Pérez.

Are you passionate about sustainable food, gardening, healthy eating or zero-waste lifestyle?

If yes, we are happy to invite you to the “Les samedis à la Cité Maraîchère” (Saturdays at Cité Maraîchère) every Saturday until Christmas.

Saturdays at Cité Maraîchère is an informative and entertaining initiative organised by the FoodE pilot project Cité Maraîchère in Romainville, France.

The Cité Maraîchère, France’s first vertical farm, provides low-income residents with fresh and healthy food. The vertical farm grows various chemical-free vegetables and fruits, including mushrooms and edible flowers. The Cité Maraîchère was designed to promote urban agriculture, social inclusion, education and job creation in farming, as well as cooking and learning opportunities. The Cité Maraîchère hosts and offers many awareness and pedagogy activities for every age group on the themes of nature in the city, eco-citizenship and sustainable food.

Since October, Cité Maraîchère has entertained hundreds of visitors with do-it-yourself (DIY) workshops, movies, cooking classes and interactive workshops on a variety of topics, including how to cook simple, healthy and seasonal food, or how to produce zero-waste cleaning products at home. This is an excellent opportunity to spend Saturdays with your children while having fun and learning something new.

Have a look at the full programme here. 

20 November - I am a city bird, by Delphine Jabeuf

27 November – Food Festival: “Feeding Change”

4 December - Visit of the Urban Drêcheurs & Workshop “Christmas cakes with grain”

11 December - DIY workshop - Making an end-of-year gift

18 December - Christmas “mocktails” workshop & DJ

Remember to register for the event, since the number of attendees is limited due to covid restrictions: contact@lacitemaraichere.com.

For thousands of years humans have built cities in which they would work and live – integrated in a local community and protected against the unpredictabilities of the outside world. Each day, the urban environment surrounding us, enables and influences what we do and how we feel. But as integral as the city is to our lives, we have neglected it in recent decades, leaving urban spaces exposed to a multitude of challenges. This starts with 91% of the world’s population living in places where air pollution levels exceed WHO guideline limits. Meanwhile, concrete buildings and roads eat up green spaces and the habitat of local species. With more than two thirds of the world population expected to live in cities by 2050, the pressure on biodiversity is likely to increase further.

However, as rich as the challenges facing our today’s cities and food systems are, so are the talents and ideas of young people to break the centuries-old dichotomy of nature and city which is best reflected in our industrialised and resource-intensive food systems. This is what inspires the yearly UrbanFarm challenge which is organised by the University of Bologna and starts now into its fourth round. Supported by funding from the European Union, the event brings together students from across Europe, scientific disciplines, and academic levels, to develop innovative concepts for more sustainable food systems.

Besides the restoration and protection of urban ecosystems, the challenge will put a focus on social equity and local growth, reflecting the multi-dimensional impact food systems have on our societies. Trying to capture the regional diversity of Europe, a place of cultural exchange and aggregation in the Italian city of Bologna and a neighbourhood in the Swedish capital of Stockholm have been chosen as locations for which the students will design models for urban farming, circular consumption, and social inclusion.

While the best project in each location will be awarded with a monetary prize of 4,000 euros, all participants will go home with practical knowledge in how to structure and present a comprehensive intervention project thanks to a series of ‘Rendez-vous’ which will accompany the challenge and provide the participants with insights from international experts in the fields of agriculture, architecture and economics.

About 10,000 years ago, agriculture opened the door to stable food supplies, letting hunters to come together and build dwellings that eventually transformed into complex modern cities. The way we produce food is hence intrinsically connected to our cities. Now it is once again time to change our food systems to enable today’s and tomorrow’s generations to have a sustainable existence in the city. Follow the UrbanFarm Challenge 2022 to see how this can be done!

A project has been launched in France to tackle the inequality of opportunity caused by the economic and health crisis. The so-called Les 100 lieux nourriciers, or the hundred nutritious places, is a project commissioned by the French Association for Professional Urban Agriculture (AFAUP) in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Food. Throughout France, innovative cooperative projects are tackling inequality. The aim is to address public health while fighting for social justice. 

France knows 8 million people who for financial reasons are unable to afford a healthy meal. Due to the economic and health crisis, France is increasingly faced with inequality of opportunity. Workers, students and families find themselves in a precarious situation where they have to rely on food aid. This need for food goes beyond social inequality, it affects the public health.

With inspiring initiatives at a local level, underprivileged people gain access to sustainable quality food. This is done, among other things, by launching a digital platform where project leader, contractor and the public can find projects in their neighborhood and further spread the arrival of community gardens, micro-farms and solidarity supermarkets.

On August 22, AFAUP started a summer tour throughout France where people are introduced to the possibilities offered by the projects. In this way, everyone can reap the benefits of this initiative. In addition to local harvested, fresh food, the projects give connection and joy.

A final seminar in December will bring together all stakeholders who work together on the future of food accessibility. They will share their experiences and create, share and enjoy the future of local, healthy food that is available to all. 

Fruits and vegetables represent a vital role in human nutrition and health, food security and environmental protection. In the context of MyLocalFoodE, Mai bine Association organised two events in the Romanian city of Iași to emphasise the importance of these products. 

On the 5th of June, Mai bine organised an urban permaculture and composting workshop. Aimed at novices in the field, participants had the opportunity to take part in gardening activities in the heart of the botanical garden at the microform of Food Forest. Participants discussed different composting techniques for city dwellers and also launched a new garden composter to recover biowaste.

On the same day, there was a convivial lunch organised to celebrate the Global Environment and Degrowth Day. The food was prepared with the help of a guest chef who used ingredients from the urban garden located at food forest, at about 2 km distance. During the event FoodE flyers were distributed in envelopes made from artisanal recycled paper with seeds.  

To raise awareness about the importance of fruits and veggies, Romanian Vegan Association and Common Ground organised their second VegFest, located in Iași. The event took place at the end of a week full of creativity, and welcomed everyone that cares for the world we live in. The city’s central boulevard hosted several stands with 100% vegetable products and activities to promote a sustainable lifestyle. Besides, biowaste was recovered to be transformed into FoodE branded compost bins. 

In addition to the culinary and social element of the event, VegFest also has a strong ecological component, as plant-based foods have a carbon footprint of 10 to 50 times lower than those of animal origin. In addition, a lifestyle in which plants occupy a central place has the potential to make us all healthier, while protecting biodiversity.

All the events left a green and living memory for the Romanian community behind, which makes the importance of fruits and vegetables clear to other generations!

Green roofs do not only beautify urban environments, they also make cities healthier and sustainable.  However, they do not come without obstacles. Through a case study in Barcelona, researchers from the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology (ICTA-UAB) analysed the barriers and opportunities with regard to the implementation of urban agri-green roofs (UAGR) in cities.

For the execution of the case study, the World Café method was used. This method is based on a constructive conversation related to critical questions and collaborative learning to evaluate the personal experience of the stakeholders (architects, public administrators, owners, researchers) involved in the First Green Roof Contest. Participants could share their thoughts and opinions in an open, welcoming, and social environment. 

Results showed a total of 129 barriers and opportunities in social, environmental, legal/administrative, technological/architectural, and economic fields.

The main barriers identified during the study where the lack of information and social cohesion on urban agriculture projects on the roof, the Mediterranean climate, lack of specific regulations and protocols, initial investment and the precondition of the roof and its bearing capacity.

On the other side, the paper also focused on the convenience of green roofs. The outcomes presented the opportunities in the improvement of the quality of life, new specific regulations, profits derived from UAGR projects and aesthetic improvement.

Regarding the stage of the UAGR life cycle at which barriers and opportunities emerge, the results highlight how most opportunities appear during the “use” stage of the roof, whereas barriers do so during the “project” stage. An effort by the government is needed to implement UAGR projects so that the population can perceive the benefits generated in all areas of society in an accurate manner.

The full study is entitled “Perceptions on barriers and opportunities for integrating urban agri-green roofs: a European Mediterranean compact city case” and can be found here.

The ever-growing world population, the increased urbanisation, and the depletion of natural resources put pressure on global food security. Combined with the effect of climate change, our food supply is at risks and food chains face challenges. Consequently, local, affordable and healthy food produced in sustainable ways becomes a prerequisite. On 13-14 February, +65 delegates gathered in Bologna, Italy to exchange on solutions and involve European citizens in the design of future-proof, local food systems.

“Think global, eat local” is the driver behind the project entitled “Food Systems in European Cities” (FoodE). FoodE will act as an exchange platform where public authorities, citizens, SMEs and non-profit organisations can share ideas, best practices and tools with a view to supporting cities and regions in their transition towards innovative, sustainable food systems.    

Firstly, FoodE will engage with local, citizen-led communities, identify success stories, and bridge these for knowledge exchange. Secondly, FoodE will launch 15 pilot projects with local partners in 12 European cities/regions (Napoli, Bologna, Sabadell, Tenerife, Amsterdam, Lansingerland, Berlin, Oslo, Longyearbyen, Romainville, Iasi, Ljubljana) and assess their outcomes for possible replicability in other circumstances.

Dr. Francesco Orsini, the Coordinator of FoodE underscores: “With FoodE, we have a clear vision of where we want to bring Europe in the long term. We seek to trigger, connect and make the most of grassroots food initiatives across the continent addressing the sustainability of regional food systems. The initiatives will combine state of the art technologies with innovative social systems and business models. Their unique feature will be underpinned by the active role of citizens involved in the food production, distribution and consumption, thus turning into prosumers”.

Led by the University of Bologna, FoodE brings together a highly qualified consortium of 24 organisations. It comprises universities, research institutes, SMEs, NGO, as well as city councils spread across 8 EU countries. FoodE is financed under Horizon 2020, the European Union Research and Innovation Framework Programme (2014-2020) and will run for four years.

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The Horizon 2020 research project FoodE develops solutions to improve the sustainability of local food systems. The project’s activities could help equip City/Region Food Systems (CRFS) with the capacity to withstand the challenges stemming from the Covid-19 outbreak. To assess the implications of the pandemic on food systems, FoodE prepares a comprehensive policy paper.

The spread of the Covid-19 pandemic has posed several challenges to food systems worldwide. Supply chains experienced severe disruptions. The relationships between producers and consumers were mostly mediated by conventional distribution channels, often at the expenses of small-scale shops and farmers’ markets. The situation requires urgent and integrated actions able to support cities and governments in rethinking the sustainability and the resilience of food systems.

The FoodE consortium recognises this as a crucial moment for action. FoodE is a H2020 research project launched in 2020, coordinated by the Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences of the University of Bologna. The consortium consists of highly qualified research institutes, cities, small and medium enterprises and non-governmental organisations around Europe. FoodE aims at involving European Union’s local food initiatives in the design, implementation and monitoring of environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable CRFS.

By adopting a CRFS approach, FoodE aims at developing innovative solutions that contribute to the design of more sustainable and resilient food systems . The project helps address the challenges emerged during the Covid-19 outbreak.  FoodE prepared a position paper entitled ‘The future of food systems beyond Covid-19: the FoodE vision for a more resilient Europe’ to share its vision on the impact of the pandemic on the food systems outlook. The FoodE community will take advantage of the multi-stakeholder approach of the project to promote technological and social innovation initiatives across Europe. This will create the basis for a fairer and a more inclusive sustainable food system. 

Understanding the Covid-19’ impact on CRFS offers lens of analysis of several components. The crisis allows to analyse the reaction and the structural changes of the food sector along with the business model transformations through new evolving technologies.

Only by “thinking globally and acting locally”, we will be able to design the food system we want.

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