Long-Term Living Lab Support Towards Food System Transformation

The Food2030 Projects Family is thrilled to introduce its latest policy brief entitled “Long-term Living Lab Support towards Food System Transformation”, realized with the support of the European Commission’s Horizon Result Booster Service.

About the Food 2030 Project Family

The Food 2030 Project Family is composed of FoodSHIFT 2030, FoodE, Food Trails, Cities 2030, and Fusilli.

It is a collaboration between five Horizon 2020-funded projects that focus on coordinating synergistic initiatives to drive innovation in European local food systems, in line with the European Commission’s FOOD 2030 and the Farm to Fork Strategy.

The Policy Brief

The most recent milestone of this collaboration is the release of the policy brief “Long-term Living Lab Support towards Food System Transformation”.

The document was launched as part of the “FoodSHIFT2030 Policy Conference on Citizen-driven transformation of the EU Food System” (Brussels, October 26 2023); the first of the five projects to host a closing event.

The overall theme of the paper is how to ensure that the impact achieved by the Food System Living Labs continues beyond the project’s lifetime.

What’s inside?

The Project Family has played a crucial role in establishing Food System Living Labs in over 50 city-regions across 21 countries, which have become essential structures for extending EU funds and initiatives to local communities and governments in a targeted and impactful manner. These labs bring together local stakeholders involved in food system innovation, offering place-based solutions to national and global challenges in our food system.

To ensure the continued success of the Food System Living Labs (FSLL) beyond the lifespan of individual projects, the paper provides policymakers of the European Commission, national governments and municipal leaders with recommendations focusing on prioritising FSLLs long term funding and guidelines to support them in implementing effective strategies to expand the impact of FSLLs.

The document proposes a systemic shift in food systems, supported by financial frameworks, funding strategies, and the recognition of the broader societal value of FSLLs as epicenters for coordination, knowledge exchange, and transformative learning.

Impact of Food Trails Living Labs

Food Trails activated 11 Food System Living Labs to co-design, implement, and evaluate pilot actions in each partner city, serving as entry points for the development of integrated urban food policies.

The 11 Food Trails cities will conclude their pilot actions by the end of 2023 and are already thinking about how the living labs and the results developed can be managed beyond the end of the project.

Regarding long-term financing of FSLL, Food Trails provides additional background material: the Roadmap for Scaling Up Impact Investments in Urban Food Systems, namely the results of the project Impact Investors Living Lab experience.

Join the Conversation and read the full policy brief

Join the conversation on FFLLs driving European Food System transformation, delving into the insights provided by our policy brief.

 

 

Read the full policy brief

 

The FOOD TRAILS project has been funded by Horizon 2020 Grant Agreement n. 101000812. For more information, please visit: https://foodtrails.milanurbanfoodpolicypact.org/