Title Public food consumption and sustainable food systems

268 Pages·2017·7.69 MB·English

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Public food consumption and sustainable food systems:
Title
Exploring the role of large organisations
Author(s) Goggins, Gary
Publication
2016-11-10
Date
Item record http://hdl.handle.net/10379/6154
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Public food consumption and sustainable food systems:
Exploring the role of large organisations

Gary Goggins

School of Political Science and Sociology,
National University of Ireland Galway

Thesis supervisor: Prof Dr. Henrike Rau

Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy
September 2016
For Poppy and Robyn

Eat with a difference.
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Abstract

Sustainable food is increasingly recognised for its potential to contribute to the
development of resilient and healthy global urban and rural communities. The
prominence of sustainable food on political agendas worldwide reflects the
growing awareness of the social, economic and environmental implications of
consuming different foods. Most recently, organisations have been identified as a
key influence on individuals’ food consumption outside home. However, rigorous
social-scientific research on the role of organisations in public food consumption
remains scarce. Instead, food practices of individual consumers continue to be the
focus of inquiry, with considerable implications for food sustainability policy.
This thesis addresses this research gap by examining food consumption within
organisations and its sustainability impacts on society and the environment. It
builds on the view that organisations, as intermediaries in the food chain, are in a
position to significantly shape the production, processing and distribution of food
as well as food-related practices of large groups.
Through a comparative case study of eight large organisations in the West of
Ireland, this thesis offers a context-focused sociological analysis of key actors and
decision-making channels within these organisations that shape the meal choices
of up to 40,000 people per day. Semi-structured qualitative interviews with 25
individuals responsible for food procurement, preparation and sales form the basis
of a rigorous cross-case comparison of organisational structures and decision-
making processes that reveals suitable points for sustainability improvements. This
is complemented with quantitative information about the sustainability of food on
offer, which was collected using the FOODSCALE method (Goggins and Rau, 2016).

The thesis highlights the influence of context and culture, the role of key actors
and the methods of food provisioning on the food sustainability performance of
organisations. Importantly, it examines areas within large organisations whose
particular social and material characteristics open up ‘alteration spaces’ that
provide unique opportunities for intra-organisational sustainability transitions,
especially regarding food provision. Importantly, this concept of ‘alteration spaces’
diverges from much existing conceptual work on sustainability transitions in
organisations by explicitly recognising individuals’ collective capacity to affect
intra-organisational change, without necessarily requiring outside intervention.
Overall, the thesis makes a major contribution to the advancement of theoretical
and empirical research on the social, economic and environmental impacts of food
provisioning in large organisations. Importantly, its findings are not only relevant
to the provision of food but can be applied to other organisational activities that
harbour considerable sustainability potential.
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Acknowledgements

I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to Prof Dr. Henrike Rau for her
irreproachable supervision.

Thanks also to my research committee members Dr. Frances Fahy and Dr. Brian
McGrath for their valuable advice and continuous offers of support, and to my
examiners Prof Dr. Marianne Penker and Dr. Frances Fahy.

This research would not have been possible without the cooperation of individuals
and organisations that participated in the study, and to them I am grateful.

I wish to acknowledge the funding received from the College of Arts, Social
Sciences and Celtic Studies, NUI Galway (2012-2014), and the Irish Research
Council Postgraduate Scholarship Scheme (2014-2016).

Finally, thanks to my family, and in particular my wife Laura, for supporting me
throughout the duration of the thesis.

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Declaration

I hereby declare that this thesis is entirely my own work and has not previously
been submitted in whole or in part as an exercise for a degree at this or any other
university.

Signed:

Date: 2nd September 2016

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Contents
.....................................................................................................................................

Abstract iii
Acknowledgements iv
Declaration v
List of tables x
List of figures xi
List of abbreviations xii
List of publications by author of this thesis xiii

Chapter 1: Introduction
1.1 Overview 2
1.2 Sustainability and food: Key challenges 3
1.3 Significance of public food consumption for sustainability 9
1.4 Sustainable food systems: What role for consumption? 12
1.5 Key research questions and research design 15
1.6 Contribution to knowledge 17
1.7 Outline for the remainder of the thesis 17

Chapter 2: Literature Review
2.1 Introduction 20
2.2 What’s the alternative? Sustainable food systems 22
2.2.1 Organic food 24
2.2.2 Fairly traded produce 26
2.2.3 Local and regionalised food systems: Solution or part of the
problem? 28
2.3 Sustainable food consumption research 34
2.4 Organisations, culture and food provisioning 41
2.5 Conceptual framework 47

Chapter 3: Methodology
3.1 Introduction 53
3.2 Research Design 53
3.2.1 Introduction to case study research 53
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3.2.2 Choosing Ireland as a case study location 55
3.2.3 Description of case study site: Galway City 60
3.2.4 Case selection 63
3.3 Data collection 66
3.3.1 Interviews 67
3.3.2 Quantitative sustainability assessment (FOODSCALE) 72
3.3.3 Organisational charts 77
3.3.4 Supply chain investigations 78
3.3.5 Documentary evidence 80
3.3.6 Direct observation 80
3.4 Data analysis and interpretation 81

Chapter 4: Influences on food provisioning practices in large
organisations
4.1 Introduction 85
4.2 Organisational context 85
4.2.1 Primary function and consumer base 86
4.2.2 Public v private sector 88
4.2.3 Size and scale 90
4.3 Contracts and procurement practices 91
4.3.1 Contract holder 92
4.3.2 Scale and scope of the contract 93
4.3.3 Type of contract 94
4.3.4 Food subsidies and tariffs 97
4.3.5 Procurement practices 99
4.4 Organisational food culture 102
4.5 Conclusion 109

Chapter 5: Assessing the sustainability of food provided for public
consumption using the FOODSCALE method
5.1 Introduction 111
5.2 How the FOODSCALE works 111
5.2.1 Organic certified food 116
5.2.2 Seasonal 116
5.2.3 Fairly traded produce 117
5.2.4 Meat 117
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5.2.5 Seafood 117
5.2.6 Eggs 118
5.2.7 Water 118
5.2.8 Food waste 119
5.2.9 Origin of food 119
5.2.10 Consumer engagement 121
5.2.11 Engaging with small producers and the local community 122
5.3 Comparing FOODSCALE scores across cases 122
5.4 Conclusion 138

Chapter 6: Alteration spaces: Intra-organisational opportunities for
sustainable food transitions
6.1 Introduction 141
6.2 The common good: promoting strong organisation-caterer relationships 141
6.3 Planning for the future: building on (sustainability) foundations 145
6.4 From the top down: food sustainability in a complex hierarchical system 149
6.5 Buying local: resisting cost-cutting food provisioning models 152
6.6 From the inside out: influencing sustainable food provisioning from the role of
middle management 154
6.7 Top, middle and bottom: developing sustainability across all organisational
levels 157
6.8 All-inclusive: the need to (re-)engage with food provisioning 160
6.9 Outside the (snack) box: introducing innovative and participatory approaches
to food provisioning 163
6.10 Conclusion 166

Chapter 7: Discussion and recommendations
7.1 Introduction 168
7.2 Sustainable food provisioning in organisations: key findings 168
7.3 Alteration spaces: Promising areas for food sustainability improvements in
large organisations 172
7.3.1 Food procurement 182
7.3.2 Catering contract 183
7.3.3 Menu development 185
7.3.4 Tariffs, subsidies and pricing 187
7.3.5 Waste management 188
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7.3.6 Infrastructure 189
7.3.7 Staff training 190
7.3.8 Information 190
7.3.9 Education 191
7.3.10 Communication and feedback 191
7.3.11 Partnerships 192
7.3.12 Special events 193
7.4 Barriers to sustainable food provisioning in large organisations 194
7.4.1 Cost and other financial constraints 194
7.4.2 Knowledge 196
7.4.3 Awareness and information 197
7.4.4 Inertia 197
7.4.5 Leadership 198
7.4.6 Consumer demand 199
7.4.7 Risk 199
7.4.8 Legal issues 200
7.4.9 Perceived inefficiencies 201
7.4.10 Availability 201
7.4.11 Resources 202

Chapter 8: Conclusions 204

References 217

Appendices
Appendix 1: Participant information sheet 237
Appendix 2: Participant consent form 239
Appendix 3: Interview guide 1 (catering managers) 240
Appendix 4: Interview guide 2 (organisational managers) 241
Appendix 5: FOODSCALE method data collection survey 242
Appendix 6: FOODSCALE method scoring system 247
Appendix 7: Report sheet for use with FOODSCALE assessment tool 250

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