Vol. 78 No. 3 (2023)
Food policy in transition - Research Articles

School Food Policy through a Project Financing

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  • Biancamaria Torquati,
  • Fabrizio Loce-Mandes,
  • Gaetano Martino
Biancamaria Torquati
University of Perugia
Bio
Fabrizio Loce-Mandes
University of Perugia
Bio
Gaetano Martino
University of Perugia
Bio
DOI: https://doi.org/10.36253/rea-14983

Published 2024-04-03

Keywords

  • School canteen,
  • small municipality,
  • alternative food networks,
  • collective project,
  • sustainable public procurement,
  • social cooperative
    • ...More
    Less

How to Cite

Torquati, B., Loce-Mandes, F., & Martino, G. (2024). School Food Policy through a Project Financing. Italian Review of Agricultural Economics (REA), 78(3), 93–109. https://doi.org/10.36253/rea-14983

Copyright (c) 2023 Biancamaria Torquati, Fabrizio Loce_Mandes, Gaetano Martino

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

In recent years, the scientific community has focused more on urban food policies adopted by big cities and less on the local food policies adopted by small municipalities. Furthermore, the empirical evidence on school food policy initiatives is quite fragmented, and the management of the canteen service is not directly addressed by the studies carried out. In this work, the school food policy implemented in a small municipality (Corciano in the province of Perugia, Centre Italy) of about 22,000 inhabitants, through the application of project financing with the participation of local social cooperatives is presented and discussed. This paper aims to reflect on the capability of the alternative food networks developed through the project financing mechanism to identify and implement the uses of the resources concerning the local food policy objectives and the project capacity of the network. The analysis is conducted using a methodological approach based on agricultural economics and anthropology. Results from economic data analysis, collective interviews, and participant observation show that: the financial balance of the project financing is positive but quite precarious and very sensitive to market variations, both regarding the overall demand for canteen meals, and the procurement of raw materials and workforce; the project’s organizational model through a local network not only can combine the environmental, social, and health dimensions of food, but it can also reshape the local concept of community, as well as new opportunities for the circulation of food products.

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