Benchmarking urban food strategies in Europe 4.12.2024 @ Oslo Region European Office

The upon-invitation workshop, sponsored by University Consortium of Seinäjoki and University of Turku in Finland, and organized in collaboration between University of Helsinki, University of Turku and the West Finland European Office, aims to discuss and brainstorm about best practices in urban food strategies at EU level.

The workshop is articulated in 2 sessions. The first one - EU perspective on urban food strategies - aims to provide the policy framework regarding actions and initiatives currently running in Europe to promote effective food strategies at municipal level. A specific focus, at the end of the session, will be on Seinäjoki food strategy which will represent a development and implementation model for the municipal and regional food ecosystem.

 The second session - Food strategies at city level in EU - aims at portraying different strategies currently in the running and/or implementation phase in some European cities and at comparing them.

The workshop will close with a brainstorming session that will lay the basis for the development for a position paper on Best practices for urban food strategies at EU level. Due to the cross-sectoral nature of food policies, a diversity of elements will be discussed such as government and political support, national and regional regulations, stakeholder and community engagement, public awareness, culture.

Additional aim of the workshop will be to start the creation of a network of European cities and experts willing and interested in collaborating and giving place to new initiatives or projects.

The event will gather practitioners, policy makers and EU and global networks working to support a transformation of the European food system through knowledge exchange and concrete actions.

PROGRAMME

SESSION 1 - EU PERSPECTIVE ON URBAN FOOD STRATEGIES

Moderator: Nanna Rintala, Project Specialist, University of Turku

14.00- 14.05: Welcome & aim of the workshop – Anu Hopia, Professor in Food Development, University of Turku and Responsible for Seinäjoki Food Strategy and Silvia Gaiani, Senior Researcher, Ruralia Institute, University of Helsinki, Finland

14.05-14.25: EU initiatives to support sustainable food production and to develop local food ecosystems and food security; expectations for the new parliamentary term, Elsi Katainen, Finnish MEP (video message)

14.25-14.40: Outlook on the new Commission’s policies on food, Mirva Männikkö, Policy Advisor, West Finland European Office

14.40-15.00: The Food Strategy Process for a resilient and sustainable Seinäjoki City Region

Anu Hopia, Professor in Food Development and Responsible for Seinäjoki Food Strategy, University of Turku, Finland and Ilari Koskinen, PhD student, University of Tampere.

Coffee break

SESSION 2 - FOOD STRATEGIES AT CITY LEVEL IN EU 

Moderator: Maryam Rezaei, Lead Food Systems Research Fellow in the Climate and Sustainability team, ODI, UK

15.15 -15.30:  Lessons from the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact: from signing the Pact to approving a Food Policy, Andrea Patrucco, Project Manager of Food Trails and MUFPP

15.30-15.45:  A food system perspective to foster sustainability transition:environmental impacts and best practices at city level, Giulia Listorti, Team Leader in the Land Resources and Supply Chain Assessments Unit of the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission (online)

15.45-16.00:  Malmö’s policy for sustainable development and food – what we learnt from the journey,

 Helen Nilsson, Project manager at the Environment Department of the City of Malmö in Sweden (online)

16.00-16.15: Not my bread alone, Kyösti Lempa, Special Adviser, NordForsk

16.15-16.30: Maria Carrascosa Garcia, Spanish City Network for Agroecology

Panel discussion

16.30-17.00: Anja De Cunto, Senior Manager of Engagement and European Public Affairs, C40 Knowledge Hub and Lucie Jeandrain, Urban Food Project Officer at Eurocities, working on the Horizon 2020 in conversation with Maryam Rezaei, Lead Food Systems Research Fellow in the Climate and Sustainability team, ODI, UK

Brainstorming

17.00- 17.30 Laying the basis for a position paper on Best practices for urban food strategies at EU level

Conclusion and next steps

Cocktail reception