Accelerating the transition to sustainable and integrated food systems at local level

Local food production is connected to energy issues to a greater extent than one would think. Cities and municipalities are finding new ways to develop green belts while preserving land.

Food systems account for nearly one-third of global GHG emissions and have a huge impact in terms of natural resource depletion, biodiversity loss and people’s health. In 2011, the European Commission announced the objective of ‘no-net-land take in 2050’ as a recommendation to preserve soil, protect biodiversity, and enhance everyone’s quality of life.

Energy consumption and local food production

Land conversion to artificial surfaces in Europe, primarily occurring in urban and commuting zones, disrupts ecological functions and reduces ecosystem resilience. It is also strictly connected to energy consumption as water is necessary to grow food and for energy production, energy is necessary to grow food and to pump and treat water and land is necessary to produce bioenergy and to install renewable energy facilities.

There is a huge need in urban areas to develop green belts to boost local production and avoid unnecessary energy consumption to preserve soils and ensure the protection of ecosystems. But how can the transition to sustainable and integrated food systems at local level be accelerated? What are the right instruments for cities to support alternative food initiatives and promote soil health and land regeneration?

Accelerating the transition in Europe

In Europe there are different initiatives to help municipalities transition to sustainable and integrated food systems at local level such as the project SPARKLE. It will develop the capacities of over 600 Local and Regional Authorities (LRA), helping to enhance their skills, through providing learning opportunities, tools, support and inspiration to successfully develop and implement their clean energy transition, also focusing on sustainable food production.

Other inspiring examples are found in France and Germany as both countries collaborate through the TANDEM initiative and organise workshops and capacity-building activities. One of the last workshops took place in November 2024 in Lille, where partners shared experiences and innovative solutions to protect soil.

Eating well, eating local

Cities in Europe are recognising that food is not solely a national and supra-national concern but a deeply interconnected urban-rural issue at the regional level. Energy Cities’ member, the city of Montpellier, has enacted policies that enable access to peri-urban farmland, offering opportunities for new farmers to trial and establish sustainable agri-business models. These are aligned with the objectives of the declaration of the Territorial Conference on the Agroecological Transition and Sustainable Food.

Besançon, the birthplace of Energy Cities, is also at the forefront of local food production initiatives. Participants of our Annual Forum will be able to discover more about them during the fourth journey, “Eating well, eating local”. The first part will have a visit to the Graines de maraîchers nursery where entrepreneurs with no farming background can test their skills at the nursery before setting up on their own.

The second part will include a testimonial workshop, which will focus on local authorities as drivers of change in the food environment, and a collective intelligence workshop based on the hold-up methodology which is based on co-development where participants help each other solve a problem with the help of facilitators.

Download the explanatory sheet and learn more about the journey.

Don’t miss the chance to attend this journey and get inspired by cities’ initiatives during Energy Cities Annual Forum 2025, which will take place on the 8^th, 9^th and 10^th April in Besançon, France. Secure your tickets here.