Christophe Soulard – Head of the ACT department, geographer, INRAE(testimonial from the dossier “Food and territories: INRAE scientists in support of territorial food projects” – 2023)
“The ACT department (Sciences for Action, Transitions and Territories) develops research on food territorialisation. It promotes a systemic view of the food issue by analysing the logic involved – for stakeholders – in producing, processing, distributing, consuming and recycling food. They are situated, based on field studies that identify local initiatives and the frameworks that influence them, such as public policies. They are participatory, because they aim to understand and support the ‘food movement’ driven by a wide range of citizen, entrepreneurial and institutional initiatives. Territorial food projects provide an ideal framework for understanding the many facets of food territorialisation in France. This dossier looks at the diversity of research contributions, including scientific findings, accounts of experience and tools for action.
Testimonial from our thematic dossier
Thematic dossier
Food and regions: INRAE scientists supporting regional food projects
Over the last 60 years, the places where food is produced, processed and consumed have gradually moved further apart: from farm to fork, the distances have increased. Faced with this phenomenon, local authorities have gradually demanded that they ‘reclaim’ their agri-food systems. INRAE scientists have been working closely with local players on these issues, in particular the ACT department, which has been conducting research into territorial dynamics for almost 40 years. In 2014, the deployment of ‘territorial food projects’, a new tool in local food policy, called on a wide range of scientific knowledge and methods, now involving several INRAE departments. This dossier is an initial look at the involvement of INRAE scientists in the implementation of local food projects.
