Multidimensional performance-based approach for the assessment of Global and Local food chains: the GLAMUR Project

Abstract There is a growing number of consumers concerned with the implications of their consumption choices. This is most relevant for food, as it plays a key role in people’s lives and sustainability performance has become a highly debated issue. How can sustainability performance of food chains be assessed? Is sustainability related to the localness of food supply chains? The EU research project GLAMUR is challenged with providing answers to these questions. The projects’ objective is to analyse the performance of food chains across multiple sustainability dimensions, exploring the connections between sustainability performance and local/global food supply chains patterns, by integrating different methodologies. The present work illustrates a case study on the bread sector in Italy, where re-localization experiences promoting “local” baking have spread. Three supply chains were identified to reflect the distinction on the local/global continuum and analyzed adopting a participatory approach, to account for the conflicting perceptions on sustainability. We assessed a selection of sustainability attributes based on a set of indicators. The analysis sheds light on the sustainability performance in relation to the chain’s degree of localness, identifies tradeoffs and suggests potential pathways for innovation.