Local food: Is it green? Authenticity questions

Buy local as a green appeal  Previously status/lifestyle laden imagery  Voluntary simplifiers  Farmers markets  Exclusivity and/or ‘opt out’  Now – economic appeal – consumer patriotism

Consumer patriotism  Supporting your own  Economic multiplier effects  Appeals to consumer ethnocentrism

What is local  Is it food or stores?  Local has different meanings in US and Europe (even within the US)  USDA “a product transported fewer than 400 miles from its place of origin generally qualifies as “locally or regionally produced food product”…. Within state also local?  Smith and McKinnon (2007) 100 mile diet  Europe – ‘terroir’ but also national understandings  Local stores – distinction between local and locally owned increasingly important

Benefits of local  Economic  Environmental  Social  Health

Economic  Multiplier of 2.5 for local spend – as opposed to 1.4 for spend in multiple  Further enhanced when spent on local food  Buy British, Buy Irish, Buy American  “Be a Local Hero, Buy Locally Grown”  Evidence in Ireland of increased intention to buy local for economic reasons

Environmental  Food miles concept  Swedish breakfast study – foods travelled equivalent of circumference of the earth  Not a perfect concept – tomato study  83% of food-related emissions happen before the food leaves the farm (Weber and Matthews 2011)  Local retail helps to avoid Clone Towns (Cox et al 2010)

Social  Concepts of community interdependence (Darby et al 2008)  “Common bond” between consumers and producers  Supporting local retailers maintains vibrant, authentic communities (Oram et al 2003)  Does this privilege developed world’s producers over less developed world?

Health  Food less likely to be artificially preserved  Food security enhanced (De Weerdt 2011)  100 mile diet increases likelihood of healthy diet (Carlsson Kanyama 2012)  Access to local shops increases quality of diet (Layte et al 2011)

Issues to be addressed Authenticity – possibility of misleading consumers by inauthentic representations – “confusion-based misleadingness” – UN 2005 “Honest Food Campaign” UK Issue for regulators – TRIPs, EU policy – PDO, PGI etc Pricing? Enhancing sustainability

Market opportunity  Rich opportunity for food marketers and local retailers  Key issues are authenticity, addressing pricing concerns, ensuring sustainability credentials Important to remember that a broad range of ecological, social and economic factors add up to sustainability