Researching European 'alternative' food networks: some methodological considerations |
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| Authors: | Laura Venn Moya Kneafsey Lewis Holloway Rosie Cox Elizabeth Dowler Helena Tuomainen |
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| Institution: | West Midlands Regional Observatory, Birmingham B4 7XG Email:; Geography Subject Group, Coventry University, Coventry CV1 5FB; Department of Geography, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX; Faculty of Continuing Education, Birkbeck College, University of London, London WC1E 7HX; Department of Sociology, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL |
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| Abstract: | Recent European literature on 'alternative' food networks (AFNs) draws heavily upon an apparently accessible and diverse body of non-conventional food networks in the agro-food sector and whilst researchers frequently refer to individual examples of farmers markets, box schemes, producer cooperatives and community-supported agriculture projects, less attention is given to the methodological processes that facilitate the identification and examination of these networks. From the preliminary stages of a research project focusing on examples of AFNs, 2 this paper examines the process of operationalizing AFNs research and reviews the difficulties associated with identifying, comparing and characterizing AFNs. |
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| Keywords: | European alternative food networks methodology producer–consumer relationships |
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