Final Report Summary - PUREFOOD (Urban, peri-urban and regional food dynamics: toward an integrated and territorial approach to food) The PUREFOOD project officially started on 1 December 2010, with 12 ESRs participating in an intensive training and research programme from June 2011 until June 2014. Almost all deliverables and milestones foreseen for the project have been met.PROJECT OBJECTIVESThere is a strong need for cooperation across disciplines and between different socio-economic actors, in order to understand the nature and dynamics of the emerging supra-disciplinary field of (peri-) urban foodscapes and the important contribution they can make to the objectives of sustainable development. PUREFOOD moves research beyond its current state-of-the-art and provides a unique opportunity for knowledge-exchange and direct implementation between companies, NGOs, public authorities, academic experts and early-career researchers from developed as well as developing countries, and make sure that this will benefit both theory and practice. The four main objectives in the project are: (1) to move research on sustainable food supply chains in hitherto unexplored directions through the adoption of an integrated approach that aims to go beyond current dichotomies; (2) to enlarge the theoretical and empirical understanding of public food procurement and urban food strategies; (3) to analyse examples of best practice in the three fields and uncover their potential in delivering food security and sustainable development outcomes; (4) to identify opportunities for, and barriers to, the development of sustainable food systems at the international, national, regional and municipal level.WORK PERFORMED & RESULTS Recruitment started before the official starting date of the project to avoid delay in starting date of the ESRs due to different procedures at the involved institutes. The strategy seemed successful with more than 350 respondents to the 12 available positions with a high average quality. All 12 available positions were filled in time in order for the group to jointly start their first training session in June 2011. The scientific background and experience of the ESRs is various, as is their country of origin. Gender balance in the project is 10 female, 2 male.All compulsory network training was finished by the end of November 2012. The BSS, ASS and PS courses were organised by Wageningen and Pisa, the winter school was organised by 4 ESRs. All 12 ESRs attended all courses and in general the courses were evaluated positively (through anonymous forms and plenary sessions). Extensive evaluation reports have been distributed among the partners and ESRs and discussed at the midterm review meeting with the Supervisory Board and the REA representative. In the training programme of November 2011 (the ASS courses) the 3 VRs of the project played a vital role. Their contribution was evaluated as very positive and relevant. Also after the ASS courses the VRs have remained involved by giving feedback on work in progress (e.g. PhD research proposals and draft papers) and by organising a special 'Food and the City' workshop at an international conference (organised by the PUREFOOD coordinator) in which most ESRs and many of their supervisors participated. In order to monitor progress, each 6 months the ESRs filled in their career development plan to monitor progress and to signal any problems at an early stage. The CDP was signed by the ESR and his/her supervisors. By the end of their contract, all ESRs finished their elective training (totalling 30 ECTS) and have an externally reviewed and approved research proposal which is necessary to obtain the degree of Ph.D. All 12 ESRs have the ambition their research will result in a Ph.D. degree, however none of them have obtained this by the end of the project. The estimation is that 9 ESRs will hold a Ph.D. degree by the end of 2015, the other 3 in the first half of 2016. Currently, all ESRs have produced multiple articles of which some are scientific and some are popular articles. Besides writing articles, the ESRs have benefited from the training opportunities offered within PUREFOOD in many other ways. ESRs supervised students, gave guest lectures, were moderators at conferences, extended their networks significantly, wrote blog posts on the PUREFOOD blog, and performed many other activities. Another aspect in the extracurricular activities of the ESRs which allowed them to be involved in a multidisciplinary and multi-actor environment, was the participation in CoP activities. The CoP activities were organised by the FOODLINKS project (FP7-ENV-2010-265287), with Wageningen University as coordinator and Cardiff University, Pisa University and City University as work package leaders. The CoPs are central to the structure and work plan of the entire FOODLINKS project, hence it was more effective and efficient to let the FOODLINKS CoP coordinators take the lead.Moreover, all ESRs have completed at least 1 secondment at another institute than their host institute. In most cases, the ESRs did their secondment at a non-academic institute, to broaden their knowledge and expertise in order to be better prepared for the job market when they finish. For some ESRs, an associated partner was added to the consortium in order for the ESR to execute the secondment that fit best with their research and future career aspirations. To broaden their expertise in both the scientific as well as the non-scientific areas, the ESRs were actively participating in conferences and other events, organised events (such as the PUREFOOD Winter school) and were active in organising additional discussions during the training sessions. In December 2013, the partner in Brazil (UFRGS) organised an international workshop of 2 days focused on the issues and topics of the PUREFOOD projects. Several partners, associated partners and ESRs presented, and the event was attended by over 150 scholars, practitioners and policy makers from around the world. The entire two days were live streamed on the internet.Regularly, partners and associated partners organised meetings (both in person as well as through Skype). In the second reporting period, the entire consortium gathered twice: September 2013 in Riga and May 2014 in Utrecht. In Riga, the project meeting was geared towards discussing research results by the 12 ESRs, both in terms of progress towards a Ph.D. degree as well as towards the added value of the outcomes for the industry partners. The associated partners played an important role here, especially since each of them was offered the opportunity to organise a workshop targeting an issue they are struggling with. This interactive approach, using the ESRs knowledge and expertise to discuss associated partners’ issues turned out to be rather effective. In May 2014 the final PUREFOOD conference took place in the Netherlands, in cooperation with a conference called 'Day of Urban Farming'. This cooperation meant a larger and broader audience to address the PUREFOOD issues to (e.g. many partners from the SUPURBFOOD project - of which Wageningen University is also coordinator - attended the PUREFOOD conference and the Day of Urban Farming). The conference was directed at the PUREFOOD triangle: the market (businesses), public sector (governments) and civil society, both in terms of speakers as well as audience. All ESRs except 1 (due to personal health issues) attended the conference. Some ESRs played a role in presenting their work or moderating a workshop. All the above mentioned activities as part of the ESRs’ research and training programme, allowed them to gain additional skills and expertise on top of what is offered to them as researcher in a scientific setting. The fact that the consortium is built up of scientific, public and private partners enriches the training facilities and thus future career opportunities significantly.EXPECTED IMPACT & USEThe programme will have considerable impact on the career prospects of the ESRs. The sound interdisciplinary training base, wide secondment opportunities, high level of international scholars associated with the project and the level of professional skills that the project promotes will enhance mobility and allow the ESRs to work in top level European institutes and in innovative companies. Some ESRs have already obtained interesting jobs due to their training within PUREFOOD. Furthermore, the involvement of the associated partners in the research and training programme have ensured a direct valorisation of scientific knowledge in policy and practice and a direct access to the newest best practices available. On a different level, the practical evidence of more sustainable food practices and modes of governance that PUREFOOD generate can directly inform a wide range of European policies. Finally, the involvement of the industry partners in the entire project process has resulted in better understanding and conception of mutual work issues and dilemmas resulting in a better basis for future cooperation. It is anticipated that PUREFOOD will initiate multiple long lasting partnerships between universities and industry partners. The improved collaborations promote greater cohesion between European research institutes, thereby contributing to further structure the European Research Area. The improved collaboration with industry partners will ensure that research findings will be taken further in practice and policy.
