Innovating food systems to enhance sustainability and resilience, particularly in response to local food crises, was at the heart of the Eurocities Working Group Food Meeting and the MUFPP Regional Forum Europe, held in Warsaw from May 22 to 23, 2024. This event brought together policymakers, city officials, key stakeholders, and researchers from across Europe to exchange experiences and co-create solutions to pressing challenges in EU urban food systems. With 30 cities from 15 European countries in attendance, it was the largest gathering since 2016, underscoring the growing importance of these issues across Europe.
State of the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact in Europe
The Milan Urban Food Policy Pact (MUFPP) continues to drive urban food system transformation in Europe, partnering with the Eurocities network, and its food Working Group Food including over 50 cities.
Recent MUFPP activities in Europe have focused on three main objectives:
- European Joint Projects: Milan leads the Horizon 2020 Food Trails project and collaborates on other EU projects like SchoolFood4Change, Cultivate, and CLEVERFOOD.
- European Advocacy: The MUFPP Secretariat launched “The Cities Feeding the Future Initiatives,” emphasizing the role of school canteens in urban food policies. Additionally, the MUFPP co-coordinates “The Urban Agenda for Europe Thematic Food Partnership” with the Lisbon Metropolitan Authority.
- Knowledge Sharing: A recent conference in Copenhagen in June 2024 focused on public food procurement as a tool for promoting more sustainable and healthy school meal programs.
During the event, a Signing Ceremony welcomed three new EU member cities to the MUFPP: Muratpaşa (Antalya), Sarajevo, and Taranto.
Innovative Food System Solutions in Warsaw
As the host city, Warsaw showcased its proactive approach to enhancing urban resilience through the ‘Warszawski Food Lab,’ a Living Lab that engages various stakeholders in co-creating public solutions.
The outbreak of the war in Ukraine further challenged Warsaw’s food system, prompting the city to prioritize food waste reduction and facilitate surplus food donations from restaurants to local NGOs, developing legal guidelines, and launching communication campaigns to support these efforts.
Additionally, the city implemented a smart labeling system to improve food management practices among organizations distributing food to vulnerable citizens.
How a Food System Approach Can Support Prompt Reactivity to Emerging Crises
A key session of the event focused on how a food system approach can enable rapid responses to emerging crises.
Christopher Hegadorn from Sciences Po Paris shared insights from the ‘Food Alert Simulation Workshop’ held in Brussels, where stakeholders collaborated on policy simulations to anticipate and respond to future food crises in Europe. Pietro Pipi from the Ukraine Office of AICS highlighted efforts to mitigate the impacts of the ongoing war on Ukrainian city food systems.
The discussion emphasizes the importance of collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and partnerships in enhancing food security and resilience.
Resilience and Responses to Food Crises: Four City Practices
In four parallel sessions, cities shared their strategies for responding to food crises:
- Warsaw: Presented grassroots initiatives that provided food to refugees during the initial months of the war, addressing the needs of over 515,000 people who reached the city.
- Milan: Showcased its ‘Municipal Operation Centre,’ a protocol for coordinated emergency response across all departments.
- Barcelona: Demonstrated how ‘The Barcelona Challenge’ tool effectively highlighted the positive impact of sustainable food initiatives through measurable outcomes.
- Birmingham: Discussed the combination of short- and long-term solutions implemented to address the cost of living crisis, highlighting proactive measures and collaborative efforts.
European Policy Context and City Demands
Despite a slowdown in the EU’s ambition to advance sustainable food systems, cities are increasingly recognizing their critical role in ensuring healthy and sustainable food for their citizens.
Through a live interactive exercise, Eurocities collected feedback from participating cities on key priorities for the new European legislature which included school meal policies, sustainable food production, and the need for a comprehensive food systems approach. Cities also called for increased EU funding for urban food systems and emphasized the importance of enhanced knowledge-sharing through peer-learning programs such as the ones organised by Eurocities.
Food Trails Replication Workshop
The ‘Food Trails Replication Workshop’ marked the culmination of a replication program involving 11 Food Trails cities and over 28 European cities that responded to the ‘Call for Cascading Cities.’
Participants engaged in discussions on localized food systems, food waste, canteens and public procurement, stakeholder engagement and governance, and food education. The workshop facilitated brainstorming on common challenges and solutions, culminating in a final segment where cities were encouraged to refine their Food Policy Action Canvases (FPACs) with support from the Food Trails cities.
Conclusions
Given the EU’s pressing food policy challenges, cities must take proactive measures. Local governments play a crucial role in implementing effective and sustainable food systems, driving innovation, and addressing unique community needs.
Many European cities have developed resilient food governance practices in response to recent crises, offering valuable lessons and solutions.
The MUFPP and the Eurocities Working Group Food provide ideal platforms for exchanging these experiences, with peer-learning programs playing a pivotal role in fostering collaboration and sharing best practices among cities.
