Abstract
Climate change and environmental degradation have intensified the urgency to transition toward sustainable food systems. Despite widespread awareness, progress remains limited due to complex, interrelated barriers. The Barriers to Food System Sustainability (BFSS) model, developed by Even et al. (2024), is a guiding framework for this study. The BFSS model identifies five interacting domains that interact to maintain the status quo: the political economy, socio-technical, socio-cultural, biophysical, and socio-economic. This study explores the socio-economic barriers that hinder sustainability within food systems. Specifically, the study examines how income, consumer preferences, and perceptions of growers, producers, and distributors contribute to unsustainable practices. While the primary focus is to identify specific barriers to sustainability, a secondary goal is to identify current practices consistent with sustainability. A holistic understanding of barriers and current sustainable practices is necessary to advance to a more sustainable food system. A focus on a local context, such as Billings, Montana, provides a more nuanced understanding of sustainability, which can then be generalized to similar communities. Drawing on existing research and data from Abundant Montana, the study proposes a mixed-methods approach to investigate how socio-economic status affects participation in sustainable community food programs. Findings from this research inform local initiatives and policy development to foster a more equitable and sustainable food system.
Details
Presentation Type
Theme
Food Production and Sustainability
KEYWORDS
FOOD SYSTEMS, SUSTAINABILITY BARRIERS, FOOD EQUITY, FOOD INSECURITY
