Urban food production for socio-technical transformations

According to the Food2030, the Finnish strategy for national food production, the aim is to produce the most sustainable food in the world. If the nation aims at making this strategy a reality, a transition in the industry needs to occur, in order to get there, the current ways of production must be replaced by innovative and sustainable systems of production. In order for this to happen policymakers, together with producers, researchers and everyone involved need to collaborate and explore innovative ways of production. In the strategy it is clearly stated that regional collaboration is essential for the strategy to succeed, nonetheless, looking closer to the Helsinki Metropolitan Region, there are no clear strategies from the cities of the capital region to put forward efforts in regards to the national strategy. In the literature around urban transitions towards sustainability, the importance of local and national agreements is underlined. Cities consume most of the goods produced in the world, it is estimated that by 2050 80% of the food produced in the world will be consumed in cities, as predictions suggest that the rates of migration from rural areas to urban areas will only increase. Not to mention the worrisome predictions of the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report suggesting climate change will, for example, increase the number of asylum seekers due to potential food shortages. For this reason, it is essential that national strategies are followed at local municipal level, where the characteristics suggest it is easier to have impactful action. As for the context of the Helsinki Metropolitan Region, there are many innovations, startups and initiatives seeking to make urban food production and consumption more sustainable, but these niche innovations can do very little without a platform that supports them, encourages food innovations and enables pathways for alternative markets to reach more customers. In this thesis, the local context is explored in order to find what are the challenges the niche innovators face and what is preventing a better local planning system that encourages alternative food production. The system is analyzed using the Multi Level Perspective framework envisioned by Rip & Kemp and adapted by Frank W. Geels as a descriptive tool to exemplify how socio-technological transitions unfold over a period of time and with pressures from actors in different levels. A descriptive visualization of the system is created where the perceived barriers are defined as well as potential collaborations that could support a transition where the actors who are currently doing the work to envision a future where food is produced locally and sustainably, implement the national strategy at local level