Mapping municipal food supply: A longitudinal‐spatial case study in Southern Germany

Abstract German food supply structures show heavy market concentration, which is often framed as a result of economies of scale and scope, individual purchasing behavior, and restrictive EU regulations. However, it remains open how these general developments influenced local food economies and their...

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Main Authors: Elena Mager, Martin Ritter, David Sipple, Heiner Schanz
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2024-01-01
Series:Urban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1002/uar2.20060
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author Elena Mager
Martin Ritter
David Sipple
Heiner Schanz
author_facet Elena Mager
Martin Ritter
David Sipple
Heiner Schanz
author_sort Elena Mager
collection DOAJ
description Abstract German food supply structures show heavy market concentration, which is often framed as a result of economies of scale and scope, individual purchasing behavior, and restrictive EU regulations. However, it remains open how these general developments influenced local food economies and their supply structures of end consumers in small–medium sized municipalities. This paper explores the evolution of local food supply structures on the spatial and temporal scale by mapping food‐supplying businesses in two typical cases, Leutkirch im Allgäu and Waldkirch im Breisgau. The comparative study shows how business‐to‐consumer structures such as food service, retail, and artisanal food processing have developed in terms of numbers of businesses, composition, and spatial distribution. Results show a sharp decline in the diversity and number of enterprises in small and medium‐sized towns. There has also been a shift of enterprises from the city center to the outskirts, for example, in the food service sector. The analysis reveals dynamics that result from a complex interplay of socioeconomic, technological, and local factors. The findings could prove particularly useful for the development of local food policies, strategies, and/or governance aiming at sustainable local food systems and could therefore have implications for their focus.
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spelling doaj-art-2ed63c33a6204f4992bcb80f540313012024-12-27T05:18:46ZengWileyUrban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems2575-12202024-01-0191n/an/a10.1002/uar2.20060Mapping municipal food supply: A longitudinal‐spatial case study in Southern GermanyElena Mager0Martin Ritter1David Sipple2Heiner Schanz3Chair Group of Environmental Governance, Faculty of Environmental and Natural Resources University of Freiburg Freiburg in Breisgau GermanChair Group of Environmental Governance, Faculty of Environmental and Natural Resources University of Freiburg Freiburg in Breisgau GermanSustainable Food Economy Lab, Institute of Economics University of Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau GermanyChair Group of Environmental Governance, Faculty of Environmental and Natural Resources University of Freiburg Freiburg in Breisgau GermanAbstract German food supply structures show heavy market concentration, which is often framed as a result of economies of scale and scope, individual purchasing behavior, and restrictive EU regulations. However, it remains open how these general developments influenced local food economies and their supply structures of end consumers in small–medium sized municipalities. This paper explores the evolution of local food supply structures on the spatial and temporal scale by mapping food‐supplying businesses in two typical cases, Leutkirch im Allgäu and Waldkirch im Breisgau. The comparative study shows how business‐to‐consumer structures such as food service, retail, and artisanal food processing have developed in terms of numbers of businesses, composition, and spatial distribution. Results show a sharp decline in the diversity and number of enterprises in small and medium‐sized towns. There has also been a shift of enterprises from the city center to the outskirts, for example, in the food service sector. The analysis reveals dynamics that result from a complex interplay of socioeconomic, technological, and local factors. The findings could prove particularly useful for the development of local food policies, strategies, and/or governance aiming at sustainable local food systems and could therefore have implications for their focus.https://doi.org/10.1002/uar2.20060
spellingShingle Elena Mager
Martin Ritter
David Sipple
Heiner Schanz
Mapping municipal food supply: A longitudinal‐spatial case study in Southern Germany
Urban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems
title Mapping municipal food supply: A longitudinal‐spatial case study in Southern Germany
title_full Mapping municipal food supply: A longitudinal‐spatial case study in Southern Germany
title_fullStr Mapping municipal food supply: A longitudinal‐spatial case study in Southern Germany
title_full_unstemmed Mapping municipal food supply: A longitudinal‐spatial case study in Southern Germany
title_short Mapping municipal food supply: A longitudinal‐spatial case study in Southern Germany
title_sort mapping municipal food supply a longitudinal spatial case study in southern germany
url https://doi.org/10.1002/uar2.20060
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AT heinerschanz mappingmunicipalfoodsupplyalongitudinalspatialcasestudyinsoutherngermany