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Short abstract:

This paper looks how to include consumers in a meaningful manner in food system transition projects through focussing on a unique group in society that bridge the gap between consumers and producers: allotment gardeners.

Long abstract:

Incorporating the interests of people, or consumers, is widely acknowledged as essential for the success of food transition endeavors (Verhees & Verbong, 2015). However, in attempts to create a sustainable food system, it is often precisely this group that is structurally absent from the ‘table’, typically resulting in end-of-the-pipe involvement with limited impact (Brons et al., 2022).

Therefore, this paper sets out to discuss how to include consumers in a meaningful manner in food system change efforts. It draws on a project (‘CropMix’) that looks into ecology-based arable farming through strip cropping.

To do so, the research focuses on a unique group of actors that bridge consumers and producers: allotment gardeners. Allotment gardeners carry specific expertise and experience from their role as producers, that they (subconsciously) use in choices made as consumers (e.g., Veen, Derkzen & Visser, 2014), and therefore offer a unique opportunity to study the intertwinement of roles and knowledge, and the impact this has on their awareness of irregularities in the food system as opposed to most consumers.

The paper draws conclusions based on a survey among approximately 120 Dutch vegetable gardeners, followed by 20 in-depth interviews. Preliminary findings show a more critical comprehensive grasp of power and dynamics in the current system.

By incorporating the perspectives of people that operate on the interface between food-production and consumption but who are not typically included in transition studies, we can enhance the systemic perspective on food system transformations, and identify action-points that go beyond the typically proposed solutions.