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Short food supply chains for local food: a difficult path

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 September 2018

Thais Rucabado-Palomar  and
Mamen Cuéllar-Padilla Open the ORCID record for Mamen Cuéllar-Padilla [Opens in a new window]
Thais Rucabado-Palomar
Affiliation:
Research Team on Agroecology, Food Sovereignty and Commons, Sociology and Peasants Studies Institute, Cordoba University, Building Gregor Mendel, Rabanales Campus, 14080Cordoba, Spain
Mamen Cuéllar-Padilla*
Affiliation:
Research Team on Agroecology, Food Sovereignty and Commons, Sociology and Peasants Studies Institute, Cordoba University, Building Gregor Mendel, Rabanales Campus, 14080Cordoba, Spain
*
Author for correspondence: Mamen Cuéllar-Padilla, E-mail: mcuellar@uco.es
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Abstract

Agri-food globalization is having a serious adverse impact on small- and medium-sized family farms in the province of Málaga (southern Spain), 43% of which have disappeared over the last 10 years. Short food supply chains (SFSCs) are emerging as a potential option for this type of farm, but as a strategy it is apparently not being implemented strongly enough over the region as a whole. The current case study sought to explore the initiatives carried out by local producers to date in implementing SFSCs throughout the province and to examine, from the standpoint of the production sector, the constraints hindering its development and the strategies currently being adopted with a view to addressing them. The analyses carried out under local producers perspective shows us that although SFSCs are interesting for family farms, in terms of prices, economic profit and social recognition, the abilities and capacities these channels require to producers, jointly with technical, flexibility and time demands, make these channels to be not that successful and attractive. Small producers interested in SFSCs must be aware of the special importance of social linkages and the need to take care of them; as well as of the need of establishing synergies and cooperation with other producers and stakeholders, in order to facilitate the tasks associated and that not every food product suit SFSCs.

Keywords

Constraintslocal producersshort food supply chainssmall producers marketing
Type
Research Paper
Information
Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems , Volume 35 , Issue 2 , April 2020 , pp. 182 - 191
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018

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