Rethinking sustainable food supply chains

The role of stakeholders’ place identity

Abstract

Introduction

The food supply chain (FSC) plays a fundamental role in human society, making its sustainable trans­formation a crucial issue (Horea-Milcu et al., 2020; Loorbach et al., 2017; Scoones et al., 2020). The significant impact of COVID-19 has further emphasized the importance of developing a sus­tainable food supply chain (SFSC) (Aday & Aday, 2020; Brewin, 2020; Galanakis, 2020). However, sustainability transitions cannot be driven by policy alone; bottom-up initiatives from local stakeholders are equally essential. Despite the growing body of literature on sustainable food supply chain manage­ment (SFSCM), one key aspect remains underex­plored: the role of place identity in shaping bot­tom-up stakeholder engagement in sustainability practices. Interviews with FSC stakeholders in Yunlin County, Taiwan (Figure 1), suggest that place identity is a significant driver of their actions to further sustainability. This factor has received limited academic attention in SFSC discussions, however. To address this gap, this commentary argues that integrating place identity into SFSC research offers a more nuanced understanding of how sustainability transitions unfold at the local level. Building on these insights, we propose a potential strategy for integrating agri-food educa­tion with the tourism industry through leveraging of place identity. This approach can foster local engagement and support long-term sustainable transformations. We also emphasize the value of interdisciplinary perspectives, particularly linking SFSC studies with human geography, to better understand place-based sustainability transitions.