Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Internationally-based indicators to measure Agri-food systems sustainability using food sovereignty as a conceptual framework

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Food Security Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Agri-food systems are essential not only in achieving food security but also in achieving both social and environmental sustainability. Despite different actors use different frameworks to define and assess food systems sustainability, there is growing consensus on the need to approach them from a complex socio-ecological systems perspective. However, existing frameworks often lack the political dimension in the analysis of food systems outcomes. Food sovereignty has emerged as a proposal that centers the discussion in the entire system putting emphasis on the political aspects of food. In this paper, using food sovereignty as a conceptual framework, we propose a quantitative methodology that allows analysis of the functioning of food systems at the international level. We present a database with 97 indicators distributed into six categories: 1) access to resources; 2) productive models; 3) commercialization; 4) food consumption and the right to food; 5) agrarian policies and civil society organization, and 6) gender. We also present the limitations found in developing the database as well as its potential applications for a wide variety of actors.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. La Via Campesina is an international movement that emerged in 1993 from the union of millions of farmers, small producers, indigenous people and migrant workers. Currently it encompasses 164 local and national organizations in 73 different countries representing around 200 million peasants worldwide.

  2. This is different to the right to adequate food, as discussed by Beuchelt and Virchow (2012).

References

Download references

Acknowledgments

This research project has its roots in the research project made in collaboration with Miquel Ortega-Cerdà, Neşat Çomak, and Mahmud Mohammed. The authors recognized their valuable participation in the early stages of the project and gratefully acknowledge their work and dedication. Dr. Rivera-Ferre is a Ramon y Cajal Research Fellow from the Spanish Ministry of Economy (MINECO). MS. Adriana Ruiz-Almeida held a grant of the Mexican National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marta G. Rivera-Ferre.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declared that they have no conflict of interest.

Electronic supplementary material

ESM 1

(DOCX 14.5 kb)

ESM 2

(XLSX 6538 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Ruiz-Almeida, A., Rivera-Ferre, M.G. Internationally-based indicators to measure Agri-food systems sustainability using food sovereignty as a conceptual framework. Food Sec. 11, 1321–1337 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-019-00964-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-019-00964-5

Keywords

Navigation