TY  - JOUR
A1  - Pradhan, Prajal
A1  - Kriewald, Steffen
A1  - Costa, Luís Fílípe Carvalho da
A1  - Rybski, Diego
A1  - Benton, Tim G.
A1  - Fischer, Günther
A1  - Kropp, Jürgen
T1  - Urban food systems: how regionalization can contribute to climate change mitigation
JF  - Environmental science & technology
N2  - Cities will play a key role in the grand challenge of nourishing a growing global population, because, due to their population density, they set the demand. To ensure that food systems are sustainable, as well as nourishing, one solution often suggested is to shorten their supply chains toward a regional rather than a global basis. While such regional systems may have a range of costs and benefits, we investigate the mitigation potential of regionalized urban food systems by examining the greenhouse gas emissions associated with food transport. Using data on food consumption for 7108 urban administrative units (UAUs), we simulate total transport emissions for both regionalized and globalized supply chains. In regionalized systems, the UAUs' demands are fulfilled by peripheral food production, whereas to simulate global supply chains, food demand is met from an international pool (where the origin can be any location globally). We estimate that regionalized systems could reduce current emissions from food transport. However, because longer supply chains benefit from maximizing comparative advantage, this emission reduction would require closing yield gaps, reducing food waste, shifting toward diversified farming, and consuming seasonal produce. Regionalization of food systems will be an essential component to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees C in the future.
Y1  - 2020
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.0c02739
SN  - 0013-936X
SN  - 1520-5851
VL  - 54
IS  - 17
SP  - 10551
EP  - 10560
PB  - American Chemical Society
CY  - Washington
ER  -