Spatial planning of sustainable groceries: promoting carbon-neutral food systems and quality of life in urban areas
Image: "Edible Garden Tour" by transitionus is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.
Food packaging is responsible for 5.4% of global food systems emissions in 2015 (Crippa et al., 2021). At least one-third of the food packaging is single-use plastic, and about a fifth of the packaging-related emissions is from fruit and vegetables (Beitzen-Heineke et al., 2017; Crippa et al., 2021). Access to healthy food environments (e.g., grocery stores with fresh vegetables and food, fewer fast-food vendors, local food production and access to urban edible gardens) can promote urban residents' quality of life and wellbeing.
The farm-to-fork strategy of the European Green Deal aims to build fair, healthy, and environmentally friendly food systems, contributing to the EU's climate ambition for 2030 and 2050. Healthy and sustainable food environments are identified to be highly correlated to urban residents' sustainable and nutritious consumption behaviours thus contributing to their wellbeing. Food environments are defined as "the physical, economic, political and socio-cultural contexts in which people engage with the food system to make their decisions about acquiring, preparing and consuming food"(Smets & Vandevijvere, 2022 : 2). In this topic, we look at the spatial pattern of different food environments in urban areas, such as urban residents' access to healthy food outlets.
This topic aims to identify spatial solutions for grocery store actors, consumers, spatial planners and policymakers to act together and build fair, healthy, and environmentally friendly food systems.
Studies in public health geography have proved that easy access to healthy food environments can significantly improve households' healthy diets and overall health (Helbich et al., 2017; Luan et al., 2015; Morland & Evenson, 2009). Building on the well-established literature, this master thesis can answer one or more questions from the following:
- To what extent do different urban areas characteristics (such as income levels, age distribution, migration background) influence the wellbeing related to food and in general?
- Is there an association between sustainable grocery behaviours (e.g., access to zero-plastic groceries) and subjective wellbeing?
- To what extent does the availability of a mix of various types of shops (supermarkets, small grocers) within walking or biking distance contributes to a healthy food system and affects the wellbeings?
Depending on the research questions, the MSc student will integrate fieldwork, questionnaires, and spatial analysis and modelling, to map and compare the accessibility of households in Amsterdam (the largest urban environment in the Netherlands) and Enschede (a representative medium-sized urban environment) to sustainable and healthy food systems. Surveys, participatory mapping and (walking) interviews can be used to gather data on people's perceptions of their grocery behaviours, quality of life and subjective wellbeing. Specific validated surveys will be included, such as the personal wellbeing index (I.W.G., 2013).
Beitzen-Heineke, E. F., Balta-Ozkan, N., & Reefke, H. (2017). The prospects of zero-packaging grocery stores to improve the social and environmental impacts of the food supply chain. Journal of Cleaner Production, 140(January), 1528–1541. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.09.227
Crippa, M., Solazzo, E., Guizzardi, D., Tubiello, F. N., & Leip, A. (2021). Food systems are responsible for a third of global anthropogenic GHG emissions. Nature Food, 2(March). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43016-021-00225-9
Helbich, M., Schadenberg, B., Hagenauer, J., & Poelman, M. (2017). Food deserts? Healthy food access in Amsterdam. Applied Geography, 83, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeog.2017.02.015
International Wellbeing Group (2013). Personal Wellbeing Index: 5th Edition. Melbourne: Australian Centre on Quality of Life, Deakin University. http://www.acqol.com.au/instruments#measures
Klug, K., & Niemand, T. (2021). The lifestyle of sustainability: Testing a behavioral measure of precycling. Journal of Cleaner Production, 297, 126699. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.126699
Luan, H., Law, J., & Quick, M. (2015). Identifying food deserts and swamps based on relative healthy food access: A spatio-temporal Bayesian approach. International Journal of Health Geographics, 14(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12942-015-0030-8
Morland, K. B., & Evenson, K. R. (2009). Obesity prevalence and the local food environment. Health and Place, 15(2), 491–495. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2008.09.004
Ng, A. W. M., Ly, S., Muttil, N., & Nguyen, C. N. (2021). Issues and Challenges Confronting the Achievement of Zero Plastic Waste in Victoria, Australia. Recycling, 6(1), 9. https://doi.org/10.3390/recycling6010009
Shumi, S., Zuidgeest, M.H.P., Martinez, J.A., Efroymson, D. and van Maarseveen, M.F.A.M. (2015) Understanding the relationship between walkability and quality - of - life of women garment workers in Dhaka, Bangladesh. In: Applied research in quality of life, 10(2015)2, pp. 263-287. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-014-9312-8
Smets, V., & Vandevijvere, S. (2022). Changes in retail food environments around schools over 12 years and associations with overweight and obesity among children and adolescents in Flanders, Belgium. Bmc Public Health, 22(1), 1570. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-13970-8
Watson, S., & Smith, E. E. (2020). Assessing Customer Attitudes towards Zero Waste Shopping. G.A.T.R. Journal of Management and Marketing Review, 5(4), 244–250. https://doi.org/10.35609/jmmr.2020.5.4(6)
This topic relates to wicked problems in several ways. For example, diverse stakeholders and knowledge are required to identify spatial solutions for grocery store actors, consumers, spatial planners, and policymakers. They must act together to build fair, healthy, and environmentally friendly food systems.
Multiple pathways can be followed to build sustainable food systems, however they are wicked problems. For instance, plastic wrapping for food items in grocery stores can be beneficial for keeping groceries fresh and long-term to reduce food waste, however it can also create plastic pollutions that are destructive for the environment and biodiversity. Food systems are a construction of physical, social-cultural, and economic environments hence it requires inter-disciplinary knowledge. It involves many factors, including the characteristics of the built and natural environment, social and economic conditions, consumer behaviour and the availability of diverse stores, all of which can interact in complex ways.
This topic has a societal impact by providing insights into how access to healthy food environments can promote urban residents' (subjective) wellbeing. This knowledge can be used to inform the development of policies and strategies for improving urban quality of life, such as promoting healthy food environments. Due to its complex and multifaceted nature, this topic draws upon multiple disciplines, including urban planning, urban geography, and environmental psychology and requires the perspective of different stakeholders.