Local food systems (LFS) are considered as alternative approaches to mainstream food systems in industrialized countries. The authors apply the normative concept of sustainable development as an analytical framework within which to critique and summarize common arguments in favour of LFS and to confront them with contradicting evidence from empirical case studies. Most of the expected effects turn out to be bidirectional. For sustainable implementation, tradeoffs have to be evaluated. Several path dependencies may also hamper successful implementation. It is clear that scientific evaluation is crucial for sound policy guidance. Therefore, an orientation towards holistic ex ante assessments is suggested.
BätzigW.ErmannU. (2001), ‘“Was bleibt in der Region?” Analyse der regionalen Wirtschaftskreisläufe landwirtschaftlicher Erzeugnisse am Beispiel des Landkreises Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz’, Zeitschrift für Wirtschaftsgeographie, Vol 45, No 2, pp 117–133.
2.
BMLFUW, ed (2006), Lebensmittelbericht Österreich 2006, BMLFUW, Vienna.
3.
BornB.PurcellM. (2006), ‘Avoiding the local trap. Scale and food systems in planning research’, Journal of Planning Education and Research, Vol 26, pp 195–207.
4.
BrownC.MillerS. (2008), ‘The impacts of local markets: A review of research on farmers markets and community supported agriculture (CSA)’, American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Vol 90, No 5, pp 1296–1302.
5.
BrunnerK.-M. (2005), ‘Konsumprozesse im alimentären Alltag: Die Herausforderung Nachhaltigkeit’, in BrunnerK.-M.SchönbergerG. U., eds, Nachhaltigkeit und Ernährung – Produktion-Handel-Konsum, Campus Verlag, Frankfurt and New York, pp 191–220.
6.
Carlsson-KanyamaA. (1998), ‘Food consumption patterns and their influence on climate change’, Ambio, Vol 27, No 7, pp 528–534.
7.
ColquhounA.LyonP. (2001), ‘To everything there was a season: Deconstructing UK food availability’, Food Service Technology, Vol 2, pp 93–102.
8.
CowellS. J.ParkinsonS. (2003), ‘Localisation of UK food production: An analysis using land area and energy as indicators’, Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, Vol 94, No 2, pp 221–236.
9.
DemmelerM.HeißenhuberA. (2003), ‘Handels-Ökobilanz von regionalen und überregionalen Lebensmitteln – Vergleich verschiedener Vermarktungsstrukturen’, Berichte über Landwirtschaft, Vol 81, No 3, pp 437–457.
10.
DuPuisE. M.GoodmanD. (2005), ‘Should we go “home” to eat?: Toward a reflexive politics of localism’, Journal of Rural Studies, Vol 21, No 3, pp 359–371.
11.
ErmannU., ed (2005), Regionalprodukte – Vernetzungen und Grenzziehungen bei der Regionalisierung von Nahrungsmitteln, Franz Steiner Verlag, Wiesbaden.
12.
GilJ. M.GraciaA.Perez y PerezL. (1995), ‘Food consumption and economic development in the European Union’, European Review of Agricultural Economics, Vol 22, No 3, pp 385–399.
13.
GottliebR.FisherA. (1996), ‘Community food security and environmental justice: Searching for a common discourse’, Agriculture and Human Values, Vol 13, No 3, pp 23–32.
14.
HalweilB., ed (2002), Home Grown. The Case for Local Food in a Global Market, Vol 163, Worldwatch Paper, Worldwatch Institute, Danvers, MA.
15.
HendersonJ. R.McNamaraK. T. (2000), ‘The location of food manufacturing plant investments in corn belt counties’, Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Vol 25, No 2, pp 680–697.
16.
HertwichE. G. (2005), ‘Life cycle approaches to sustainable consumption: A critical review’, Environmental Science and Technology, Vol 39, No 13, pp 4673–4684.
17.
HinrichsC. C. (2000), ‘Embeddedness and local food systems: Notes on two types of direct agricultural market’, Journal of Rural Studies, Vol 16, No 3, pp 295–303.
18.
HinrichsC. C. (2003), ‘The practice and politics of food system localization’, Journal of Rural Studies, Vol 19, No 1, pp 33–45.
19.
HoferK.StalderU., eds (2000), Regionale Produktorganisationen als Transformatoren des Bedürfnisfeldes Ernährung in Richtung Nachhaltigkeit? Potenziale – Effekte – Strategien, Geographisches Institut der Universität Bern, Bern.
20.
HöperU.JürgensenM.HargensR.GroßK.-U.HülsemeyerF. (2000), ‘Unternehmensgrößenabhängige ökonomische und ökologische Auswirkungen bei Erfassung, Be- und Verarbeitung und Distribution von Milch und Milchprodukten’, in WernerW.BöttcherJ.IsermeyerF.KalmE.OtteA., eds, Regionale Vermarktungssysteme in der Land-, Ernährungs- und Forstwirtschaft – Chancen, Probleme und Bewertung, DLG, Frankfurt am Main, pp 115–129.
21.
IlberyB.MayeD. (2005), ‘Food supply chains and sustainability: Evidence from specialist food producers in the Scottish/English borders’, Land Use Policy, Vol 22, No 4, pp 331–344.
22.
JungbluthN., ed (2000), ‘Umweltfolgen des Nahrungsmittelkonsums: Beurteilung von Produktmerkmalen auf Grundlage einer modularen Ökobilanz’, dissertation, Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule, Zürich.
23.
LamineC. (2005), ‘Settling shared uncertainties: Local partnerships between producers and consumers’, Sociologia Ruralis, Vol 45, No 4, pp 324–345.
24.
MariolaM. J. (2008), ‘The local industrial complex? Questioning the link between local foods and energy use’, Agriculture and Human Values, Vol 25, No 2, pp 193–196.
25.
MarsdenT.BanksJ.BristowG. (2000), ‘Food supply chain approaches: Exploring their role in rural development’, Sociologia Ruralis, Vol 40, No 4, pp 424–438.
26.
MathijsE.Van HauwermeirenA.EngelenG.CoeneH., eds (2006), Instruments and Institutions to Develop Local Food Systems, Final Report CP/59, Belgian Science Policy, Brussels.
27.
PeltoG. H.PeltoP. J. (1983), ‘Diet and delocalization: Dietary changes since 1750’, Journal of Interdisciplinary History, Vol 14, No 2, pp 507–528.
28.
PenkerM. (2006), ‘Mapping and measuring the ecological embeddedness of food supply chains’, Geoforum, Vol 37, No 3, pp 368–379.
29.
PfisterG. (1998), ‘Über Regionalisierung und Dienstleistungsorientierung zur nachhaltigen Entwicklung?’Wirtschaftsdienst, Vol IV, pp 218–223.
30.
PrettyJ. (2000), ‘Towards sustainable food and farming systems in industrialised countries’, International Journal of Agricultural Resources, Governance and Ecology, Vol 1, No 1, pp 77–94.
31.
SageC. (2003), ‘Social embeddedness and relations of regard: Alternative “good food” networks in south-west Ireland’, Journal of Rural Studies, Vol 19, No 1, pp 47–60.
32.
SchlichE.FleissnerU. (2005), ‘The ecology of scale: Assessment of regional energy turnover and comparison with global food’, The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, Vol 10, No 3, pp 219–223.
33.
SchmidtleinE.-M.GlasU.HeissenhuberA. (2002), ‘Die Produktlinienanalyse als Bewertungsinstrument für eine regionsbezogene Beurteilung von wirtschaftlichen Aktivitäten, dargestellt am Beispiel der Herstellung und des Vertriebes von Brot’, Berichte über Landwirtschaft, Vol 80, No 1, pp 134–159.
34.
SchmitzP. M. (2000), ‘Ökonomische und ökologische Bewertung regionaler Vermarktungssysteme: Theoretische Grundlagen’, in WernerW.BöttcherJ.IsermeyerF.KalmE.OtteA., eds, Regionale Vermarktungssysteme in der Land-, Ernährungs- und Forstwirtschaft – Chancen, Probleme und Bewertung, DLG, Frankfurt am Main, pp 105–114.
35.
SundkvistA.MilestadR.JanssonA. (2005), ‘On the importance of tightening feedback loops for sustainable development of food systems’, Food Policy, Vol 30, No 2, pp 224–239.
36.
TunzelmannN.AchaV. (2005), ‘Innovation in “low-tech” industries’, in FagerbergJ.MoweryD. C.NelsonR. R., eds, The Oxford Handbook of Innovation, Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp 407–432.
37.
Van HauwermeirenA.CoeneH.EngelenG.MathijsE. (2007), ‘Energy lifecycle inputs in food systems: A comparison of local versus mainstream cases’, Journal of Environmental Policy and Planning, Vol 9, No 1, pp 31–51.
38.
WinterM. (2003), ‘Embeddedness, the new food economy and defensive localism’, Journal of Rural Studies, Vol 19, No 1, pp 23–32.
