DETUROPE (Jun 2017)
Local Food Systems Supported by Communities Nationally and Internationally
Abstract
Due to the concerns about the long-term sustainability of globalized retail trade as well as the more and more determining health-conscious food-consuming attitude the systems of government respectively the groups of conscious consumers all over the world put emphasis on the popularization and development of local food chains and small-scale supply chains simultaneously they connect the retailers producing highquality, local foods with the direct markets. In my study, I would like to present an overview of the development and current state of community supported agricultural systems on the international and Hungarian level and on the basis of the results of my questionnaire survey. I will indicate whether there are any demand for local food in Hungary and about how much the population of the six investigated settlements are familiar with it. Within this type of alternative local food systems, farmers and their buyers form a community based on social capital (co-operation, mutual trust and mutual responsibility), a direct sales channel, in such a way that cooperation is also beneficial to the producer and the consumer. The producer is in an advantageous position as he can form a direct and long-term relationship with his consumers selling his high-quality products locally consequently he can work in a cost-effective and optimal way. However, the advantage of the consumer is that he can obtain healthy foods from reliable sources contributing to the maintenance of his health respectively to the development of local economy.
