Sustainability transitions of food systems are at the core of several of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In many regions, grassroots initiatives (i.e., community-led bottom-up initiatives) have emerged to experiment with alternative food networks and change the dominant food regimes. While grassroots initiatives can play a crucial role in sustainability transitions, it is known that actors usually face challenges related to (1) building and maintaining an initiative, and (2) diffusing it to the mainstream. However, the systemic mechanisms underlying these two types of challenges in food systems are still underspecified. Building on previous empirical research, the paper uses systems thinking (qualitative causal loop diagrams) to detail (1) the systemic mechanisms underlying the emergence and maintenance of an alternative food network; and (2) the feedback loops related to organizational and logistics issues that pose limits to scaling. It explains the paradox of diffusion in alternative food networks and concludes that diffusion of alternative food networks to mainstream may be achieved through replication and translation strategies, rather than scaling-up.

粮食系统的可持续性转型是联合国若干可持续发展目标 (SDG) 的核心。在许多地区，已经出现了草根倡议（即社区主导的自下而上的倡议）以试验替代食物网络并改变占主导地位的食物制度。虽然草根倡议可以在可持续性转型中发挥关键作用，但众所周知，参与者通常面临与 (1) 建立和维护倡议相关的挑战，以及 (2) 将其扩散到主流。然而，粮食系统中这两种挑战背后的系统机制仍未明确。在以往实证研究的基础上，该论文使用系统思维（定性因果循环图）详细说明（1）替代食物网络出现和维持的系统机制；(2) 与组织和后勤问题相关的反馈循环对扩展构成限制。它解释了替代食品网络中扩散的悖论，并得出结论，替代食品网络向主流的扩散可以通过复制和翻译策略来实现，而不是扩大规模。