Project
Law for sustainable food production (commisioned by PBL)
We explore leverage points and barriers in existing legislation that impact the sustainability of the food and agricultural system, with a focus on the Netherlands. By analyzing relevant legal instruments, their implementation, and enforcement challenges, this study aimed to identify pathways to support the transition to a more sustainable food production system, providing an agenda-setting foundation for further research.
The Law chair group of Wageningen University & Research is focused on advancing understanding of the role and potential of law in sustainability transitions. At the request of Planbureau voor de Leefomgeving (PBL), this exploration serves to gain better insight into legal instruments that can be used to help achieve sustainability in the food production sector, as well as current barriers in existing legislation and regulations that may hinder or impede sustainability.
Food safety, food sustainability and food chain dynamics are for the most part governed at the EU level. Therefore, the focus here is on European legislation, as well as the national implementation thereof in the Netherlands, across fields such as environment, food safety, trade and (international) companies that influence the sustainability of the agricultural and food system in a broader sense.
Down below you will find a link to the report.
This report served to explore the leverage points and barriers in existing legislation that impact the sustainability of the food and agricultural system. As increasingly recognized in the literature, legal systems are complex and path-dependent systems, containing legal forces that both support and hinder sustainability transitions.
By analyzing relevant legal instruments, their implementation, and enforcement challenges, this study aimed to identify pathways to support the transition to a more sustainable food production system, providing an agenda-setting foundation for further research.