Chance to Change the Chain

Imagining a More Circular and Inclusive Food Supply Chain

Student report (2022)

Authors

Y. SHEN Architecture and the Built Environment
L. Peek Architecture and the Built Environment
T.T. Kuiters Architecture and the Built Environment

Contributors

Verena Elisabeth Balz Spatial Planning and Strategy - Architecture and the Built Environment (supervisor 1)
N. Katsikis Urban Design - Architecture and the Built Environment (supervisor 1)
Faculty
Architecture and the Built Environment
Copyright: © 2022 Fran SHEN, Lisa Peek, Timon Kuiters
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Published Date

06-04-2022

Language

English

Reuse Rights

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Faculty

Architecture and the Built Environment

Abstract

Food. It is grown, processed, distributed, sold, eaten and then oftentimes
carelessly discarded. In the European Union, 88 million tonnes
of food waste is produced each year, while the Netherlands stands
out as the EU’s largest producer. Food waste causes soil degradation,
emits significant amounts of greenhouse gasses and can contribute
to poorer respiratory health. Moreover, food waste is also representative
of our growing disconnect with natural systems and subsequent
unsustainable lifestyles. Yet, annually, more natural habitats are destroyed
to make way for agriculture and livestock, often in response to
providing for a growing population. However, there can be a reimagination
of a more circular bio-based economy and food supply chain
that lessens the pressure on the earth. The existing infrastructure
of the Port of Rotterdam and its surrounding areas provide a fertile
landscape in which this can take place. Additionally, while reducing
food waste, intensifying social segregation and inequality concerning
ethnicity, income and urban/non-urban divides in Zuid-Holland can be
addressed to ensure environmental, economical and social robustness
and longevity.

Solutions for problems relating to food waste, and social segregation
and inequality, have then been translated into a spatial vision and
strategy to realize a more circular and inclusive food supply chain in
Zuid-Holland by 2050. The vision and strategy are based on holistic
analyses of the spatial distribution and character of the current linear
food supply chain and demographic studies of the inhabitants of
Zuid-Holland. This is then supported by policies and strategic projects
that aim to use and build onto existing frameworks and spatial
conditions to achieve the overarching aims. Key drivers of the vision
and strategy include a transition of the port’s current fossil fuel economy
to a regional hub for organic fertilizer production to be exported
domestically as well as internationally. Additionally, a network of community
exchange centers and a matrix of interfaces together aim to
change the spatial and societal fabric of Zuid-Holland. To do this, they
provide space for members of the same and different communities to
share knowledge, experiences and tools, as well as re-establish connections
with the natural world.