Delft Design researchers develop vision for new food system

News - 10 February 2022 - Communication

How will we consume food in the future? How will our food system meet the rising food demand while mitigating the negative consequences of food production and consumption? These questions drove the Food Waste: From Excess to Enough (FETE) research team to envision a new food system.  

The FETE research team consists of Delft Design researchers and people from Wageningen University, Groningen University and several food companies such as Iglo, HAK and Hello Fresh. Hannah Goss, PhD candidate at our faculty, tells us more:

“Using Delft Design methods, we envisioned a food system where consumers, retailers, and producers fulfil different roles to provide our society with enough food. A system that helps us to appreciate food more and encourages less purchasing without compromising on food quality, variety, or convenience. And which embraces flexibility, regulates vitality, recognises the value of food, and optimises through learning.”

Our current food system is driven by the need for excess and elaborate food choices. Today, we see millions of people worldwide suffering from malnutrition and hunger, while at the same time, one-third of all food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted every year. This extensive food loss and waste comes with considerable social, economic, and environmental impact affecting both individual’s and society’s wellbeing.

“As part of my PhD research, we developed a vision of a future food system in collaboration with FETE, Reframing Studio, and Freek Trimbach Animations,” says Goss. “FETE brings universities and innovative food system organisations and companies. Together we investigate how our food system, which focuses on producing and consuming 'excess' food, can transition towards producing and consuming 'enough' food. This vision serves as a long-term point on the horizon to develop collectively, mobilize change, and inspire innovations to take steps towards this future.”

What are the next steps for FETE? “We are seeking collaboration from key actors outside our consortium, especially larger food retailers. Think about Jumbo, Albert Heijn, and ALDI, for instance. In our design vision, they play an important role in changing our food system and we would love to further expand on that together.”

For more information, please contact Hannah Goss (H.Goss@tudelft.nl)

Hannah Goss

"Let's make sense!"

Nynke Tromp

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