TY - JOUR

T1 - Food policy councils as loci for practising food democracy? Insights from the case of Oldenburg, Germany

AU - Sieveking, Annelie

N1 - This research was supported by the Volkswagen Foundation and the Lower Saxony Ministry for Science and Culture funded project ‘Leverage Points for Sustainable Transformations: Institutions, People and Knowledge’ (Grant Number A112269). I would like to thank all the interviewees for the time they dedicated to this study and my student assistants Mira Bodynek and Theresa Brand for their support in data documentation and analysis. I also would like to thank two anonymous reviewers and the special issue editors for their helpful comments on earlier versions of the manuscript.

PY - 2019/10/28

Y1 - 2019/10/28

N2 - In the highly concentrated and consolidated 21st century food systems, a broad range of stakeholders are rarely involved in food-related decision-making processes. One innovative institutional response is the establishment of food policy councils (FPCs). These institutions are often initiated by civil society actors and seek to transform prevailing agro-industrial food systems. They aim to raise awareness for alternative practises of food consumption and production, and they try to shape food policies at different governance levels. FPCs have been acclaimed for their democratic potential in the past. This study uses the five key dimensions of food democracy identified by Hassanein (2008) to assess the ways in which FPCs might represent loci for practising food democracy. This is achieved by taking one of the first FPCs in Germany as an example. During a two-year study period (2016-2018), the emergence of the FPC Oldenburg was studied through participant observations, semi-structured interviews, and document analysis. Data analysis reveals examples of, as well as challenges related to, all five dimensions of food democracy. In addition, the in-depth analysis of the case also illustrates the importance of taking additional aspects into account, i.e., openness and transparency. Looking at an additional dimension of food democracy, which covers the “How?" of the deliberative process, might allow for a more nuanced analysis of the democratic potential of food initiatives in the future.

AB - In the highly concentrated and consolidated 21st century food systems, a broad range of stakeholders are rarely involved in food-related decision-making processes. One innovative institutional response is the establishment of food policy councils (FPCs). These institutions are often initiated by civil society actors and seek to transform prevailing agro-industrial food systems. They aim to raise awareness for alternative practises of food consumption and production, and they try to shape food policies at different governance levels. FPCs have been acclaimed for their democratic potential in the past. This study uses the five key dimensions of food democracy identified by Hassanein (2008) to assess the ways in which FPCs might represent loci for practising food democracy. This is achieved by taking one of the first FPCs in Germany as an example. During a two-year study period (2016-2018), the emergence of the FPC Oldenburg was studied through participant observations, semi-structured interviews, and document analysis. Data analysis reveals examples of, as well as challenges related to, all five dimensions of food democracy. In addition, the in-depth analysis of the case also illustrates the importance of taking additional aspects into account, i.e., openness and transparency. Looking at an additional dimension of food democracy, which covers the “How?" of the deliberative process, might allow for a more nuanced analysis of the democratic potential of food initiatives in the future.

KW - Civil society

KW - Empowerment

KW - Food citizenship

KW - Food democracy

KW - Food policy council

KW - Sustainability Governance

KW - Environmental Governance

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85074405597&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.17645/pag.v7i4.2081

DO - 10.17645/pag.v7i4.2081

M3 - Journal articles

AN - SCOPUS:85074405597

VL - 7

SP - 48

EP - 58

JO - Politics and Governance

JF - Politics and Governance

SN - 2183-2463

IS - 4

ER -