Food Studies Commons^™

Reclaiming The Future Through Small-Scale Agriculture: Autonomy And Sustainability In The Caribbean, Dana M. Conzo

Doctoral Dissertations

My dissertation, “Reclaiming the future through Small-Scale Agriculture: Autonomy and Sustainability in the Caribbean,” is a political-economic analysis of land politics, foodscapes and foodsheds, and small-scale agricultural activities in plantation economies on the Caribbean island of St Kitts. Using ethnographic and geographic methods, such as participant observation, interviews, social network analysis, and foodshed mapping, I investigate the cultural and economic niche of local farmers, documented and analyzed the island’s foodshed, and provide a historical and economic background of St Kitts to link historical processes to contemporary spatial organization and agricultural practices. I consider the complexities of food inequalities and food …

To Reform And To Procure: An Analysis Of The Role Of The State And The Market In Indian Agriculture, Kartik Misra, Deepankar Basu

Economics Department Working Paper Series

Since the early 2000s, many Indian states started reforming their agricultural marketing policies and allowed private traders to buy directly from farmers outside the state-regulated market system. The experience of these states during the period 2000 - 2012 can shed light on the impact of market-oriented reforms and the role of public procurement. Using individual-level National Sample Survey Data on agricultural wages and a new dataset on state-level average real farm income per cultivator for 18 major Indian states between 1987 – 2012, this paper shows, using both a difference-in-difference and a triple difference framework, that marketing reforms alone did …

An Empirical Investigation Of Real Farm Incomes Across Indian States Between 1987-88 And 2011-12, Deepankar Basu, Kartik Misra

Economics Department Working Paper Series

Using unit-level data from various rounds of the Employment and Unemployment Survey of the National Sample Survey Organisation, we present the first consistent time series of average real farm income per cultivator for 18 major Indian states for 1987-88, 1993-94, 1999-00, 2004-05, 2007-08, 2009-10, and 2011-12. Using this data, we study two sets of issues. First, how did real farm income evolve across these 18 Indian states? Which states have high levels and growth rates of real farm incomes? Is there any evidence for convergence of real farm incomes across Indian states? We find evidence for unconditional convergence, which suggests …

Understanding Agrihoods: An Exploration Into The Growing Trend Of Farm-To-Table Communities Across The United States, Benjamin Breger

Masters Theses

Agrihoods are a recent trend in real estate development that integrate agricultural amenities - such as working farms, orchards, or community gardens - into residential or mixed-use communities. As an emergent trend, agrihoods have the potential to enhance farmland preservation and local and regional food systems, making them a ripe area for research. However, very little scholarly research has been carried out to characterize, contextualize or evaluate agrihood developments. Thus far, the development model has primarily been detailed in popular media sources. This thesis serves as a baseline study that seeks to understand how neighborhood food systems operate within agrihood …

Integrative Experience: Soil Microbes And The Sustainability Of Organic Agriculture, Kristen Deangelis, Luiz Domeignoz Horta

Microbiology Educational Materials

This curriculum describes a one-unit course designed to fulfill the University of Massachusetts requirement for Integrative Experience as part of the Gen Ed curriculum for undergraduates.

Food Safety And Risk Of Foodborne Illness At A Food Center Extension: Toolkit For Front-Line Volunteers, Sara Anderson

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Background: Foodborne illness is a serious public health issue. One in six Americans has an episode of foodborne illness each year and over 50,000 are hospitalized. Food distribution centers are instrumental in decreasing food insecurity, however, some of the food donated is expired or may be damaged leading to increased risk of foodborne illness.

Purpose: The purpose of this project was to educate front-line volunteers at a local food center regarding food safety.

Methods: A toolkit was developed to teach food safety to the front-line volunteers. Seven classes were given to front-line volunteers including a pre and post intervention …

Panel 1 Paper 1.3: Le Paysage Rural Patrimonial, Outil Et Projet Au Service De La Lutte Contre Le Réchauffement Climatique, Régis Ambroise

ISCCL Scientific Symposia and Annual General Meetings // Symposiums scientifiques et assemblées générales annuelles de l'ISCCL // Simposios científicos yy las Asambleas Generales Anuales

Cette intervention fait référence au paragraphe de la résolution19GA 2017/30 du Conseil International des Monuments et des Sites indiquant que « la 19° Assemblée générale de l’ICOMOS… salue l’adoption de l’accord de Paris et encourage tous les membres de l’ICOMOS à renforcer leurs efforts pour appuyer sa mise en œuvre et identifier les réponses qui s’appuient sur le patrimoine ou les paysages culturels… ». Elle prend l’exemple de la façon dont les paysages de terrasses ont été abordés ces dernières années dans trois situations différentes : en France, dans le Guizhou en Chine et dans le Priorat en Espagne.

En …

Embodied, Rationed, Precarious: Conceptualizations Of Sovereignty In Urban Food Regimes, Candan Turkkan

Doctoral Dissertations

Through a case study of how provisioning of Istanbul has changed since the 19^th century (late Ottoman Period), this dissertation unravels the ways in which food, bodies and biological processes have become objects of intervention for the modern nation-state and more contemporarily, for neoliberal governmentality. Chapters 1, 3 and 5 focus on urban provisioning models (urban provisioning, codependent provisioning, urban food supply chain respectively). Chapters 2, 4 and 6 analyze various economic dynamics, practices, tools, strategies, and mentalité deployed by different provisioning actors, and expose different conceptualizations of sovereignty embedded in each provisioning model (embodied, rationed, precarious respectively). Conclusion …

Pro-Social Consumer And Firm Behavior In Imperfectly Competitive Regional Agricultural Markets, Jill Fitzsimmons

Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation, I combine field research, econometric methods, and economic theory to analyze a market in which both firms’ and consumers’ choices are motivated by social preferences. This work contributes to the fields of behavioral economics, industrial organization, and local food systems economics. The dissertation expands the growing literature on social preferences to incorporate firms’ choices that are motivated by utility maximizing objectives in an environment that allows endogenous equilibrium prices and quantities. Firms with social preferences operate in a competitive environment in which they may face downstream market power. In particular, the research focuses on intermediated Farm to …

Comparing Millennial Visitors To Wineries And Breweries In British Columbia: An Examination Of Social Involvement, Social Return, And Self-Image Congruency, Jarrett R. Bachman, John S. Hull, Sanja Haecker

TTRA Canada 2019 Conference

No abstract provided.

Understanding Millennial Interest In Participating In Wine Tourism - A Case Study On The Kamloops Wine Trail, British Columbia, Canada, John S. Hull, Jarrett R. Bachman, Sanja Haecker

TTRA Canada 2019 Conference

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Sustainable Local Food Among Tourism Stakeholders: A Comparative Study In Vancouver, Canada And Christchurch, New Zealand, Hiran Roy, C.Michael Hall, Paul W. Ballantine

TTRA Canada 2019 Conference

Local food is increasingly regarded as an element of sustainable tourism and hospitality. This study examines restaurant and chefs’ (tourism stakeholders) perceptions, motivations, and constraints in buying local food ingredients from local farmers’ market vendors on a study conducted in Vancouver, Canada and Christchurch, New Zealand. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with restaurants and chefs. The study identified that restaurants and chefs are most interested in perceived tangible benefit such as freshness, as well as more intangible motivations such as supporting local farmers and the local economy/community/businesses. However, they experienced challenges with purchasing. Based on the findings, strategies are posited for …

Enhancing Visitors Experiences At Artisan Businesses: A Case Study Of The Économusée® Business Model In British Columbia, John Predyk, Nicole L. Vaugeois

TTRA Canada 2018 Conference

ÉCONOMUSÉE© is a non-profit organization founded in 1992 in Quebec, Canada which now includes over 70 Artisans from across Canada and Europe. The model promotes the preservation of traditional knowledge and local entrepreneurship by utilizing cultural tourism to showcase artisans and encourage the consumption of locally produced artisanal products. This study was completed in order to provide data on the growth and effectiveness of the ÉCONOMUSÉE program in British Columbia since it was first introduced in 2012. This paper highlights the results of the impact of the model on overall visitor experience. At this point in time, it appears that …

Restaurants Going Local: Motivations And Challenges For Sourcing Local Food, Mark Robert Holmes, Rachel Dodds, Katarina Pranjic, Jessica Krecisz, Hannah Taylor

TTRA Canada 2018 Conference

Visitors to destinations are frequently looking to partake of the local fare when travelling, either away from home or to another country (CRFA, 2016). Couple this with the local food movement and the increasing propensity for sustainable travel (Dodds and Holmes, 2017; Loureiro and Umberger, 2005), it begs the question of why restaurants might look towards sourcing locally and the barriers they face. This paper looks to investigate the greatest motivations for restaurants to implement local food in regard food quality, guest interests and appreciation, and social and environmental justice. As well, looking to gain an understanding of the barriers …

Food Insecurity At A Four-Year College Campus, Danielle Corrado

School of Public Policy Capstones

This paper, through an adaption of the United States Department of Agriculture Adult Food Security survey tool, aims to identify food insecurity rates at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, the demographic characteristics associated with food insecurity, potential financial factors that contribute and predict food insecurity rates, and the relationship between food insecurity and academic performance. Lastly, this paper examines on and off campus resources available to students and students perception of food insecurity before college as compared to actual food security status in college.

Promoting Healthy Diets: Challenges And Opportunities Of Nutrition Policy Implementation In Food Banks, Sarah Brown-Anson, Elizabeth Leibinger, Hadassah Masudi Minga

School of Public Policy Capstones

In recent years, food banks have grown increasingly aware of the role diet plays in wide-spread public health issues such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity. Food banks already purchase healthy foods directly and select nutritious items distributed by government programs such as The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). Recently, some banks have implemented nutrition policies to regulate donations made by businesses and individuals to further decrease the volume of less healthy options in their warehouses.

This study explores the challenges and opportunities associated to the implementation of nutrition policies for donated food items by Food Banks in the USA. …

Adolescents’ Soda Consumption In Mexico Before And After The Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Tax: Results From National Health And Nutrition Surveys, Estefania Martí Malvido

School of Public Policy Capstones

In 2014 Mexico implemented a national tax on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) as a public health strategy. Over the last decades, obesity has significantly increased among adolescents (12-19 years). In addition, the consumption of high-energy beverages among adolescents more than doubled from 1999 to 2006. The current study investigates the relationship between the SSBs tax and the caloric soda consumption in the Mexican adolescent population utilizing cross-sectional data from two nationally representative nutrition surveys. One from 2012 which took place before the tax was implemented and one conducted in 2016, two years after tax implementation.

Results show a positive association between …

Syllabus: Writing About Food, Carol Connare

Sustainability Education Resources

This course approaches food writing from a news reporting perspective. The Pioneer Valley is home to a network of food producers, from farmers and cheesemakers to brewers and beekeepers. Students will travel into the field to meet people who make and grow what we eat, conducting interviews and collecting information to synthesize into multimedia stories for publication around themes such as health, history, travel, ecology, animal welfare, social change, nutrition, and home cooking. Students will experience the full spectrum of food writing—blogs, magazine articles, personal essays, reviews, recipe-centered pieces, social and cultural commentary—and create stories in a variety of these …