PERSPECTIVE published: 09 March 2021 doi: 10.3389/fsufs.2021.642787 Envisioning the Future of European Food Systems: Approaches and Research Priorities After COVID-19 Matteo Vittuari 1 , Giovanni Bazzocchi 1 , Sonia Blasioli 1 , Francesco Cirone 1 , Albino Maggio 2 , Francesco Orsini 1 , Jerneja Penca 3 , Mara Petruzzelli 1 , Kathrin Specht 4 , Samir Amghar 5 , Aleksandar-Mihail Atanasov 6 , Teresa Bastia 7 , Inti Bertocchi 8 , Antoine Coudard 9 , Andrea Crepaldi 10 , Adam Curtis 11 , Runrid Fox-Kämper 4 , Anca Elena Gheorghica 12 , Agnès Lelièvre 13 , Pere Muñoz 14 , Erwin Nolde 15 , Josè Pascual-Fernández 16 , Giuseppina Pennisi 1 , Bernd Pölling 17 , Edited by: Andrea Pieroni, Lèlia Reynaud-Desmet 18 , Isabella Righini 19 , Youssef Rouphael 2 , Vèronique Saint-Ges 20 , University of Gastronomic Antonella Samoggia 1 , Shima Shaystej 21 , Macu da Silva 22 , Susana Toboso Chavero 23 , Sciences, Italy Pietro Tonini 23 , Gorazd Trušnovec 24 , Benjamin L. Vidmar 25 , Gara Villalba 23 and Fabio De Menna 1* Reviewed by: Renata Sõukand, 1 Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy, 2 University of Naples Federico II, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, Italy Naples, Italy, 3 Euro-Mediterranean University, Piran, Slovenia, 4 Institut für Landes- und Stadtentwicklungsforschung Cornelia Butler Flora, (ILS)—Research Institute for Regional and Urban Development, Dortmund, Germany, 5 Gemeente Lansingerland, Iowa State University, United States Lansigerland, Netherlands, 6 Hague Corporate Affairs, The Hague, Netherlands, 7 Comune di Naples, Naples, Italy, 8 Comune *Correspondence: di Bologna, Bologna, Italy, 9 Metabolic Institute, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 10 Flytech S.r.l., Belluno, Italy, 11 Nabolagshager AS, Fabio De Menna Oslo, Norway, 12 Asociatia Mai Bine, Iaşi, Romania, 13 AgroParisTech—Institut des sciences et industries du vivant et de fabio.demenna2@unibo.it l’environnement, Paris, France, 14 Ajuntament de Sabadell, Barcelona, Spain, 15 Nolde and Partner, Berlin, Germany, 16 University of La Laguna, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Spain, 17 South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences, Iserlohn, Germany, 18 Commune de Romainville, Romainville, France, 19 Wageningen Plant Research, Wageningen University and Specialty section: Research, Wageningen, Netherlands, 20 UMR SADAPT, INRAe, Université Paris-Saclay, AgroParisTech, Paris, France, This article was submitted to 21 Tåsen Microgreens AS, Oslo, Norway, 22 Organización de Productores de Túnidos y Pesca Fresca de la Isla de Social Movements, Institutions and Tenerife—ISLATUNA, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain, 23 Autonomous University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain, 24 Urban Governance, Beekeeping Society, Ljubljana, Slovenia, 25 Polar Permaculture Solutions AS, Longyearbyen, Norway a section of the journal Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems Received: 16 December 2020 The COVID-19 pandemic unveiled the fragility of food sovereignty in cities and confirmed Accepted: 12 February 2021 the close connection urban dwellers have with food. Although the pandemic was Published: 09 March 2021 not responsible for a systemic failure, it suggested how citizens would accept and Citation: Vittuari M, Bazzocchi G, Blasioli S, indeed support a transition toward more localized food production systems. As this Cirone F, Maggio A, Orsini F, Penca J, attitudinal shift is aligned with the sustainability literature, this work aims to explore the Petruzzelli M, Specht K, Amghar S, Atanasov A-M, Bastia T, Bertocchi I, tools and actions needed for a policy framework transformation that recognizes the Coudard A, Crepaldi A, Curtis A, multiple benefits of food systems, while considering local needs and circumstances. This Fox-Kämper R, Gheorghica AE, perspective paper reviews the trends in production and consumption, and systematizes Lelièvre A, Muñoz P, Nolde E, Pascual-Fernández J, Pennisi G, several impacts emerged across European food systems in response to the first Pölling B, Reynaud-Desmet L, wave of pandemic emergency, with the final aim of identifying challenges and future Righini I, Rouphael Y, Saint-Ges V, Samoggia A, Shaystej S, da Silva M, strategies for research and innovation toward the creation of resilient and sustainable Toboso Chavero S, Tonini P, city/region food systems. The proposal does not support a return to traditional small- Trušnovec G, Vidmar BL, Villalba G scale economies that might not cope with the growing global population. It instead and De Menna F (2021) Envisioning the Future of European Food stands to reconstruct and upscale such connections using a “think globally act locally” Systems: Approaches and Research mind-set, engaging local communities, and making existing and future citizen-led food Priorities After COVID-19. Front. Sustain. Food Syst. 5:642787. system initiatives more sustainable. The work outlines a set of recommended actions doi: 10.3389/fsufs.2021.642787 for policy-makers: support innovative and localized food production, training and use of Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems | www.frontiersin.org 1 March 2021 | Volume 5 | Article 642787 Vittuari et al. Envisioning Future European Food Systems information and communication technology for food production and distribution; promote cross-pollination among city/region food systems; empower schools as agents of change in food provision and education about food systems; and support the development of assessment methodologies and the application of policy tools to ensure that the different sustainability dimensions of the food chain are considered. Keywords: city/region food system, SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, sustainable food systems, food initiatives, food security INTRODUCING CITY/REGION FOOD geography and that decisions about food should operate across SYSTEMS: THE FOODE VISION the urban-rural continuum. Second, such an outlook recognizes the ecological, socio-economic, and governance linkages that A diffuse concern about food systems’ resilience has grown characterize food systems. These different dimensions not only throughout Europe in face of the current COVID-19 crisis deserve equal attention but are also recognized as mutually (Bakalis et al., 2020). Although scarcity of food was not a real reinforcing (Jennings et al., 2015). threat, the crisis increased awareness on the potential exposure The CRFS has then become a new lens of analysis, paving of food systems to new shocks and crises, especially in terms the way for a more sustainable, resilient, fair, and healthy food of food access (Béné, 2020), consumer behavior, small-scale system worldwide (World Urban Forum, 2014), and can help productions, and alternative food networks (Galanakis, 2020). today in the identification of innovative solutions to cope with The pandemic and the related lockdown measures favored the aftermaths of the COVID-19 crisis. more formal and consolidated national and global supply This paper builds on the FoodE H2020 project, which sees the chains, particularly in urban contexts. In fact, localized and collaboration of 24 partners from eight European countries and sustainable food production and distribution experiences had to aims to engage local organizations in the design, implementation, face additional challenges, such as interruptions in the supply and monitoring of environmentally, economically, and or demand chains due to the lockdown and the need to socially sustainable CRFS. The goal of this paper is to offer identify new distributions channels (FAO, 2020a,b). Under these a systematic view of European food systems response to circumstances, a policy framework that takes into consideration COVID-19, highlighting the major trends and impacts and local needs and conditions and recognizes the multiple benefits discussing the potential policy implications related to the future associated with localized and sustainable food production and of CRFS. distribution experiences (Nicholls et al., 2020) becomes more urgent than ever. The international sustainability agenda has started to METHODOLOGY acknowledge the urgency of this shift, recommending increased diversity of plant-based foods, reduced consumption of meat, The work adopted a mixed-method approach integrating a substantial cuts in food waste, and re-localization of supply literature review with the opinion of experts and stakeholders chains (SCBD, 2020). Similarly, the Sustainable Development from a wide range of organizations and European countries. Goals Target 2 has mandated countries to ensure sustainable Starting from the CRFS definition, a literature review was food production systems and double productivity and incomes carried out to identify the most critical food system areas affected of small-scale food producers (United Nations, 2015). by the COVID-19 pandemic. The literature was systematized With reference to urban food systems, after the Global call by a mixed method of research based on scientific papers and for action conference of the World Urban Forum (2014), the materials coming from gray literature. Concerning the peer City/Region Food System (CRFS) approach started to gain review literature, the high number of documents acquired and increasing attention within the international debate. At that time, revised have been collected through SCOPUS and Web Of stakeholders were already aware that a territorial and holistic Science. The gray literature review was carried out through food system approach was the most suitable way to tackle the Google Scholar, expert opinions, direct interviews, as well upcoming global challenges. as daily press in various languages, and blogs. Collected Afterwards, the CRFS framework was introduced by Jennings information was clustered into five food system areas: (1) et al. (2015) and defined as: “the complex network of actors, agriculture, fisheries, and production systems; (2) innovative processes, relationships that has to do with food production, business models for increased resilience and sustainability; and processing marketing, and consumption in a given geographical (3) evolving technologies; (4) consumers behavior changes and region which includes a more or less concentrated urban center adaptations; and (5) schools and education. For each area a and its surrounding peri-urban and rural hinterland.” dedicated working group was created. Working groups were Other than representing a multidimensional way of action, composed of 4–5 experts belonging to a wide range of food the CRFS approach entails two significant innovations. First, stakeholders types including universities and research institutes, it aims at creating a food governance structure that considers small and medium enterprises, non-governmental organizations, local circumstances, understanding that cities exist within a and municipalities. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems | www.frontiersin.org 2 March 2021 | Volume 5 | Article 642787 Vittuari et al. Envisioning Future European Food Systems TABLE 1 | Involved participants in the stakeholder’s workshop, per country, and revealing footprints of a shift citizens might wish to embrace. The organization. subsequent sections outline and discuss the main observed effects Country Organization Number of in food production, distribution, and consumption stages. participants Food Production Italy Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di 15 Production suffered from a consistent limitation of transport Bologna lines and a generalized closing of borders. Suddenly, during Comune di Bologna 3 the spring season, workers were unable to reach their farms, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II 3 making it harder to carry out the harvest, catch and management Flytech 3 of seasonal products. Simultaneously, the compulsory social France Institut des Sciences et Industries du 1 distancing and personal protective equipment hampered the Vivant et de l’Environnement daily work in the fields. Safety measures created difficulties Institut National de Recherche pour 1 in production at all stages, especially for those informal l’Agriculture, l’alimentation et l’environnement chains where health and safety conditions were already Commune de Romainville 2 limited. In these cases, implementing such measures proved Germany Fachhochschule Südwestfalen 2 challenging and led to either increased likelihood of infection or Institut für Landes- und 2 reduced production. Stadtentwicklungsforschung gGmbH To buffer the labor shortage burdens, a variety of public Nolde Erwin and Partner 1 and private actors developed apps and online platforms to Netherlands Hague Corporate Affairs BV 3 match farmers’ demands of seasonal staff and support mitigating Stichting Wageningen Research 2 production activities logistical disruptions (Laborde et al., 2020; Norway Gallis Miljø Og Kommunikasjon - 1 Mitaritonna and Ragot, 2020). Despite having a consistent Nabolagshager success, these services could not fully offset the problem, and food Polar Permaculture Solutions 1 losses remained a major tangible concern (IOM., 2020). Other Romania Asociaţia Mai Bine 1 than the challenges in the fields, the stocking of products which Slovenia Arctur Računalniški Inženiring 3 could not reach the market at the pre-COVID19 rate, became a Društvo Urbani Cebelar 1 central issue. Only those commercial facilities having extensive Spain Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona 5 capacity and enough flexibility, were able to transform products Universidad de La Laguna 1 through canning or freezing techniques, while many others were Total participants 52 left with unsold fresh products in the warehouses. Finally, the shutdown of the Hotellerie-Restaurant-Café services, which represent a crucial market for many farmers and The work was organized in three rounds. In the first round small producers, worsened the difficulties, reducing the sales each working group collaborated independently to gather data, volumes of many. summarize relevant information, and discuss ongoing trends. The second round was represented by a large workshop engaging Food Distribution a wider number of stakeholders (Table 1) providing feedbacks The shift toward online shopping and takeaway consumption, and opinions on each of the five areas. The third round consisted both for fresh ingredients and ready to eat meals, led to a in an iterative consultation process within the five working structural transformation of small and medium food initiatives, groups with the aim to integrate and review expert inputs. deeply modifying the customer relationship and sales channels. The joint revision enabled the systematization of the process For many CRFS, whose major value proposition consists of and the harmonization of all provided contents. To follow a the relational connections delivered inside and outside their food supply chain logic the five groups were then reduced to organizations, the effects of social distancing measures were three: (1) food production, covering agriculture, fisheries, and perceived as more severe than those experienced among more production systems, (2) food distribution, covering innovative traditional food suppliers (Pulighe and Lupia, 2020). Only, in business models for increased resilience and sustainability some cases, both newcomers and experienced online platforms and evolving technologies, (3) food consumption, covering developed communication tools that allowed maintaining such consumers behavior changes and adaptations and schools and relational dimension. education (EP, 2020) (Figure 1). Workers, but also volunteers, struggled to reach their food initiatives, creating also in this case a labor shortage (especially for food delivery) that ultimately resulted in a consistent gap FOOD TRENDS RELATED TO THE within the food chain operational structure. Similarly, the logistic COVID-19 CRISIS disruption led to inputs shortages (OECD, 2020), which made it harder to proceed with the business as usual especially for the The first wave of the COVID-19 outbreak did not lead to a major initiatives with lower bargaining power (FAO, 2020a). disruption of the European food systems, but it shed light on The shutdown of food and farmers’ markets, together with some specific challenges for each segment of the food chain, restaurants and school canteens, contributed to the failure of Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems | www.frontiersin.org 3 March 2021 | Volume 5 | Article 642787 Vittuari et al. Envisioning Future European Food Systems FIGURE 1 | Perspective paper methodological development. local offer and alternative food networks. Only consolidated while being more cost-conscious due to the uncertain economic distribution hubs, such as supermarkets and conveniences stores, situation (Accenture, 2020). As a result, consumers often adopted remained open at an early stage, reducing the range of choices for a back-to-basics approach to nutrition, with more home cooking food actors. In some countries, as in the case of Italy, consumers and baking (Bernstein, 2020; Nielsen, 2020; OCU, 2020). Notably, were encouraged to shop in the nearest store (Gazzetta Ufficiale citizens also stockpiled non-perishable goods, such as canned della Repubblica Italiana., 2020). food, tomato sauce, pasta, flour, and yeast (OCU, 2020; Rogers, Large retailers were less endangered than specialist and niche 2020). shops, which were often obliged to rely on local governmental Meanwhile, an increased sensitivity toward food support to overcome structural and technological barriers (FAO, sustainability, healthier diets, and an effort to establish 2020c). stronger bonds with the origin of food emerged (Cohen, The closure of the Hotellerie-Restaurant-Café sector also had 2020; Rodríguez-Pérez et al., 2020). As an example, higher additional implications. The sector usually purchases products attention was given to ingredients selection, recipes scouting, with different packaging as compared with home consumers. and online cooking classes. Thus, part of the packaged products was no longer marketable, A surge in demand for short-supply chains and home delivery leading to increased food waste (Petetin, 2020). options, often supported by digital solutions, was observed in many countries (Hobbs, 2020). Local small-scale suppliers Food Consumption received larger attention by consumers since they were associated The consumer trends that have emerged during the COVID-19 with higher safety standards and better food quality (Rizou et al., pandemic represent a major signal of change. From a household 2020). In some cases, the consumers’ demand on online delivery perspective, a typical consumer was motivated to maintain his channels consistently far exceeded the available distribution or her physical and mental health and had more time available, capacities (Hobbs, 2020; Nielsen, 2020). Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems | www.frontiersin.org 4 March 2021 | Volume 5 | Article 642787 Vittuari et al. Envisioning Future European Food Systems With regards to food waste, the preliminary evidence provided actors to start working back on what CRFS initiatives consider by large national surveys (Roberts and Downing, 2020; Waste as their core value proposition. Watcher, 2020) confirmed a reduction of household food waste Similarly, the home cooking trends, connecting more deeply thanks to more time for in-home food management and cooking consumers and producers, will probably change once workers and a better planning for grocery shopping. will start getting back to their regular work shifts and workplaces Despite observing several positive trends, vulnerable groups (Fernández-Aranda et al., 2020). Despite not leading to a long- faced severe barriers in food consumption during the lockdown. lasting positive modification of consumers eating habits, the Primarily, the shutdown of school canteens affected food security pandemic cooking pattern might influence the food consumption and habits for entire families. According to the United Nations, vision for quite some time. Time availability and more simple World Food Programme (2020), about 320 million children saw food planning and management (e.g., in most of the cases their schools temporarily closing due to COVID-19. all the meals were consumed at home by all the members of Pre-COVID-19 policies in European school canteens enabled the family) represented key drivers in reducing food waste. to offer high-quality food, with relevant positive effects on pupils’ However, although some of the new skills and habits might dietary intake (Clinton-McHarg et al., 2018; Micha et al., 2018). remain, the return to the pre-COVID-19 working schedule Consequently, the lockdown measures likely put poorer children and lifestyle will probably limit the progresses obtained during under nutritional stress, since the school meal might represent the lockdown. their only adequate food intake (Dunn et al., 2020). This effect In certain countries, the effects of COVID-19 on household was further aggravated by the difficulties of food banks, which income and food security have been dramatic and were extended experienced a drop in financial resources and a shortage of to a rather large share of families (Power et al., 2020; The volunteers (FEBA, 2020). Food Foundation, 2020). This was worsened by the changes in children’s consumption patterns whose social programs and Impacts on Food System school canteens were suspended. Parents with lower awareness Due to the exogenous nature of this shock, the COVID- of healthy diets and less disposable time for cooking might 19 provoked a series of new behavioral shifts. Changes were have offered a less virtuous alternative to school canteens, both quite unpredictable, leading to layered environmental, economic, by reducing the attention to their children’s food care and by governmental, and social impacts. As analyzed, observed offering them more packaged and ready-to-eat products. This adjustments immediately shaped consumption and production phenomenon did not only affect children’s diets but might have habits leading to new supply chain patterns. Depending on the contributed to higher consumption of foods featuring larger governmental attitudes and capabilities, some of the rapidly environmental impacts and lower nutritional values. emerging trends along the entire supply chain are probably Similarly, in some cases, new consumption behaviors also destined to have a temporary nature. Others are likely to have produced further unintended environmental consequences, longer-term implications. depending on the type and amount of food purchased, as well as Thanks to specific policy interventions detrimental reactions the related packaging. The diffusion of food delivery and last-mile that have not shown to improve European food systems, emergency logistics might have resulted in increased pollution, should succeed in remaining short-term and limited to the even though partially outpaced by lockdown traffic reduction. emergency period, while beneficial shifts should be framed to Additionally all delivered food, required great amounts of guarantee their long-term viability. The results from such an packaging materials, whose sustainable alternatives were often uncertain and challenging period will depend on the diffused too expensive to be adopted by small-scale activities. ability to correctly manage these positive and negative impacts As anticipated, according to individual priorities, these cycles as described in Figure 2. The extent to which these immediate changes might be converted into long-term behavioral mutual cycles will be reiterated will determine whether more trends, positively affecting people’s daily lives. Somewhat resilient and sustainable food systems will emerge from the consciously, people changed the perception of the food COVID-19 crisis. systems, possibly giving higher importance to local networks and adapting their shopping preferences to a new level of Short-Term Impacts awareness (Béné, 2020). Growing demand for environmentally Short-term impacts emerged clearly. For instance, the negative and socially ethical products has gone hand in hand with impact of social distancing measures that prevented the higher awareness, and these jointly will boost local food Hotellerie-Restaurant-Café service from using table service for production and consumption (Hobbs, 2020). If such an intention their customers, has led the increasing home delivery options as were properly sustained, the diffusion of proximity production a possible solution for restaurants (Laguna et al., 2020). However, and distribution systems such as urban gardening and local this trend is likely to disappear once the emergency period will scale farming may encourage the implementation of shorter end. However, the effect might depend on the time extension of food chains. these measures, as reduced capacity would not be economically viable for an extended period (Dube et al., 2020). Long-Term Impacts In general, the relational dimension of CRFS limited by the Considering long-term implications, lockdown trends also crisis will likely be re-established or re-designed over time, showed an increase in the online demand for foods and creating new interactive formats, and making it easier for all beverages. Once consumers have sunk the learning costs required Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems | www.frontiersin.org 5 March 2021 | Volume 5 | Article 642787 Vittuari et al. Envisioning Future European Food Systems FIGURE 2 | Impacts on the European CRFS—Envisaged negative and positive outcomes cycles. to adopt these types of food delivery and firms have adapted their food habits, preferences, and food attitudes. Once school catering spaces and operations to these shifts, changes are likely to persist started to re-open, such dedication might end up in an increased well beyond the COVID-19, even though to a reduced extent. parents’ involvement in food education activities and in the If these digital accelerations can be seen as a virtuous design of school food quality, in terms of both food types innovation phenomenon for the whole sector, such a rapid and producers’ selections. Food supply might be rethought, transition may risk excluding smaller CRFS, ensuring major taking advice on the economic impact its management has on benefits only for more consolidated structures (Belavina et al., local farmers. 2017; Arnalte-Mur et al., 2020). Moreover, smallholders may already face larger difficulties in recovering from the economic effects of the crisis, due to their lower business capacity. The pandemic helped food stakeholders understanding the POLICY-IMPLICATIONS: TOWARD THE importance of strategic and local partnerships, both to increase FOOD SYSTEM WE WANT AND NEED their value and improve their ability to cope with possible future crises. If correctly handled, this might entail a higher The COVID-19 outbreak and the related responses allow to number of cooperative initiatives, open innovation ecosystems, understand and evaluate the kind of possible and, indeed, and shared networks. desirable reforms, from a systemic point of view. In many aspects, Given the increased time children spent at home and the bottom-up actions by producers and participatory consumer largest number of meals shared with the family, the lockdown proposals prove to be in line with the emerging European policy period could have raised parent’s awareness on the importance agenda (EC, 2020), which indicates the commitment to address of the daily meal, giving them more time to understand children food systems imbalances. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems | www.frontiersin.org 6 March 2021 | Volume 5 | Article 642787 Vittuari et al. Envisioning Future European Food Systems To reinforce this perspective and improve resilience in food Further research commitment and stakeholders’ supply chains local, national, and European governments should involvement should aim at unveiling the most urgent consider to: questions, offering reasonable ground to drive the envisaged food planning. • Encourage a diversification in food provision, including local How new systemic organizational structure and policy food production, as a mean for a more resilient supply frameworks transforming the positive shifts into more chain, promoting more substantial and innovative small- permanent and sustainable behaviors can be created? Which scale production systems, whose social contribution has been type of measurements are needed to support a more holistic highlighted by the pandemic. The strategy might include and integrated view on food production, distribution, and actions aimed at promoting the existence of local CRFS, consumption to ensure equal importance at economic, favoring investments into marketing and information and societal, and environmental needs? What should be the role of communication technology use for those activities that are government in this transition? The ability to make city/regions lagging through. Examples include ad-hoc training, call for more resilient will crucially depend on policy stakeholders’ actions, and public competition opportunities. In the long run, commitment to prioritize these challenges in the local and global this could help accelerate CRFS and improve competitiveness sustainability agenda. with respect to more consolidated channels. • Promote open discussion tables and forums, partnerships, and reciprocal learning to ensure cross- DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT pollination and best practices exchange among CRFS. Besides facilitating reciprocal supports, this will help The original contributions generated for the study are included increasing the bargaining power of CRFS initiatives, in the article/supplementary material, further inquiries can be making them more equipped against future time directed to the corresponding author/s. of crisis. • Address schools as a central re-starting point. Involving AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS teachers, families, and students in the definition of sustainable diet patterns, promoting food educational campaigns, and MV, GB, SB, FC, AM, FO, JP, MP, KS, and FD equally contributed responsible shopping choices can help to transform cheerful to the concept of the study, its framework, the coordination and consumer’s behavioral change into systemic and long-lasting activities of subgroups, and writing of the manuscript. SA, A-MA, habits. To this scope, the provision of food in schools should TB, IB, ACo, ACr, ACu, RF-K, AG, AL, PM, EN, JP-F, GP, BP, put those principles in effect and should be combined with LR-D, IR, YR, VS-G, AS, SS, MdS, ST, PT, GT, BV, and GV equally educational approaches on the community and territorial contributed to the activities of subgroups and the review of the services. Similarly, open-air educational projects as urban or manuscript. All authors contributed to the article and approved school vegetable gardens (Pennisi et al., 2020) can represent the submitted version. promising alternatives. • Ensure that the development of policy tools include FUNDING evaluations on different sustainability dimensions of the food chain. Given the evidence of the multifaceted The research leading to this publication has received funding benefits delivered by food initiatives, it is crucial to make from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and sure all food values and attributes are considered when innovation programme under grant agreement no. 862663. The making decisions. publication reflects the author’s views. The Research Executive Agency (REA) is not liable for any use that may be made CONCLUSIONS of the information contained therein. This work was also supported by and ERC Consolidator grant awarded to Gara The first wave of the COVID-19 outbreak emphasized the Villalba (818002-URBAG). need to establish new governance mechanisms engaging public authorities, citizens, small and medium enterprises, and non- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS profit organizations in the conceptualization and design of new models for sustainable CRFS that deliver environmental, The authors would like to thank the following contributors for societal, and economic benefits. The second wave of the their valuable inputs and feedbacks: Ilaria Braschi, Margherita outbreak and the related lockdown measures will offer the Del Prete, and Francesca Monticone from the University of chance to assess whether previous adaptations resurfaced (in Bologna; Chiara Cirillo from the University of Naples Federico case of short-term) or continued (in case of long-term) and II; Luuk Graamans from Wageningen University and Research. whether policies put in place to scale up beneficial transitions The authors thank all partners in the FoodE consortium for were successful. their collaboration. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems | www.frontiersin.org 7 March 2021 | Volume 5 | Article 642787 Vittuari et al. Envisioning Future European Food Systems REFERENCES IOM (2020). Migrants and Global Food Supply, COVID-19 Analytical Snapshot. International Organization for Migration. Accenture. (2020). 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Available online at: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/ any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential sustainable-development-goals/ conflict of interest. Waste Watcher (2020). Rapporto 2020 La Spesa ai Tempi di COVID-19. Bologna. World Urban Forum (2014). “City region food systems and sustainable urbanisation: a call for global action,” in Conference on City Region Food System Copyright © 2021 Vittuari, Bazzocchi, Blasioli, Cirone, Maggio, Orsini, Penca, and Sustainable Urban Development (Medellin: World Urban Forum). Petruzzelli, Specht, Amghar, Atanasov, Bastia, Bertocchi, Coudard, Crepaldi, Curtis, Fox-Kämper, Gheorghica, Lelièvre, Muñoz, Nolde, Pascual-Fernández, Pennisi, Pölling, Reynaud-Desmet, Righini, Rouphael, Saint-Ges, Samoggia, Conflict of Interest: A-MA was employed by company Hague Corporate Affairs. Shaystej, da Silva, Toboso Chavero, Tonini, Trušnovec, Vidmar, Villalba and ACo was employed by company Metabolic Institute. 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