Foodshed Vancouver – envisioning a sustainable foodshed for Greater Vancouver

Image from thesis by James Richardson.

Foodshed Vancouver – envisioning a sustainable foodshed for Greater Vancouver

By Richardson, James M.
Degree – Master of Advanced Studies in Landscape Architecture – MASLA
University of British Columbia
2010

Abstract:

This study explored assessment methods for sustainable foodshed design. A sustainable foodshed was defined as a regional form that meets local food needs, is energetically productive, and is ecologically and socially resilient. Food system energy inputs were measured through a life-cycle assessment of production, distribution, processing, and nutrient cycling inputs to determine the food system energy balance for Greater Vancouver’s hypothetical foodshed. The model accounted for embedded variables such as dietary habits, circulation allotments and distribution chains, ultimately requiring the integration of qualitative and quantitative indicators at a regional, municipal and farm scale.

Findings suggest that Canadians purchase roughly 710 kg of food per year, demanding 0.68ha of farmland per capita. If all proximal Agricultural Land Reserve areas were fully utilized to support Greater Vancouver’s 2006 population, it would require 3.5 joules of energy to produce, distribute, prepare and cycle nutrients for every joule of energy contained in the food Vancouverites eat. It may require a radical transformation of dietary habits and processing methods, and a renewed dependency on human-powered agriculture to sustainably feed the population of Greater Vancouver.

Excerpt:

While urban agriculture will never fully be responsible for meeting food needs in cities, it has a profound role in socially connecting people to their food system. Though difficult to quantify, this relationship encourages a sense of responsibility that can lead to consumers eating less meat and processed foods, two variables which have a huge effect on the energy balance of the food system. Michael Pollen argues that consumers should “Eat Food. Mostly Plants, Not too much.” (Pollen 2008) There is no better teacher for this lesson than engaging people in agriculture. Therefore while regional farms grow food, community gardens and urban farms encourage people to buy local food in a synergy that can result in the development of a sustainable food system. This is an interesting example where a small part of the foodshed that produces very little food can inform the performance of the whole through agricultural education and engagement.

See the complete paper here.