from the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development |
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JAFSCD article by Kristen Becker, Khush Bakht Aalia, Archie Jarman, and Erin McGuire
(U of California, Davis); Olufolajimi Talabi (Independent consultant); and Youri Dijkxhoorn, Emma Termeer, and Bart de Steenhuijsen Piters (Wageningen Economic Research)
Critical to food systems transformation is an often-overlooked powerhouse: Africa’s informal midstream. This diverse network of traders, transporters, wholesalers, and retailers forms the vital bridge between production and consumption—especially for fresh, nutritious fruits and vegetables.
In a new JAFSCD article, Leveraging the innovation potential of informal midstream actors to enhance food systems outcomes, authors Kristen Becker, Khush Bakht Aalia, Olufolajimi Talabi, Youri Dijkxhoorn, Archie Jarman, Emma Termeer, Bart de Steenhuijsen Piters, and Erin McGuire examine the introduction of plastic crates into Nigeria’s tomato value chain as a replacement for traditional packaging methods that often lead to significant postharvest losses. Through interviews with key stakeholders in this value chain, the research team uncovered challenges, motivations, and innovative capacities of informal actors, along with the enabling and constraining factors that shape change. These offer insights for policymakers, practitioners, and researchers focused on agricultural innovation and food systems. Corresponding author Kristen Becker can be contacted at kristenlbecker22@gmail.com.
KEY FINDINGS -
Successful innovation in food systems depends on partnerships between informal midstream actors and formal sector service providers who can offer enabling services and investment.
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Understanding relationships, incentives, disincentives, and socio-economic realities—especially those tied to gender and social dynamics—is critical for designing effective, participatory innovation processes.
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Trade-offs must be addressed. No single innovation meets all actors’ needs; feasibility studies should investigate potential trade-offs and power dynamics that could create an imbalance to adoption along the entire value chain.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR POLICY, PRACTICE, AND RESEARCH Policy makers and implementers can consider the following from these findings: -
Foster inclusive collaboration: Formal sector service providers and investors should actively partner with informal midstream actors to co-design and scale innovations, ensuring all value chain segments, including those dominated by women, are involved from the outset.
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Innovate for gender equity: Tailor interventions to overcome gender-specific constraints, such as providing in-market crate rental options, diversifying women’s income opportunities, and creating enabling environment for women to participate in higher-value segments of the chain.
- Encourage private sector engagement: Incentivize crate service providers and other formal businesses to invest in complementary innovations—such as cold storage—and to take on initial capital risk to enable wider adoption among capital-constrained actors.
- Build trust and cross-segment communication: Strengthen relationships across the value chain to reduce competition-based resistance, encourage co-investment, and align supply with market demand.
SHARE ON YOUR SOCIALS:
Reducing food loss, boosting safety, and supporting women—can informal traders do all that? New research from Nigeria explores how partnering with these “informal midstream” actors can transform fresh food systems. The study focused on introducing plastic crates into the tomato value chain—a small innovation that could cut post-harvest losses, improve food safety, and create new opportunities for women traders. Find out more and key takeaways @JAFSCD article for free: https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2025.144.013
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Photo above: Tomatoes at market in Nigeria; photo from the Horticulture Innovation Lab by Jesse Daystar. |
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JAFSCD article by Youngmi Kim (Virginia Commonwealth U), Jennifer Murphy (U of Texas at Arlington), Jessica Hoy (Virginia Commonwealth U), and John C. Jones (Virginia Commonwealth U)
In a new JAFSCD article, Exploring college student experiences with little pantries: A qualitative study addressing campus food insecurity, authors Kim and her team present initial findings from an exploratory qualitative research study that aimed to explore the pilot little pantries model on campus through college students’ experiences.
Food insecurity is a growing concern among college students, impacting their academic performance, physical health, and mental well-being. While campus food pantries are a common intervention, students often face barriers such as limited awareness and concerns about stigma. This study evaluates the Little Ram Pantries program—an innovative initiative that places nonperishable food items in compact containers across public campus locations. Through three focus groups at a public university, the researchers used thematic analysis to explore their experiences. Findings suggest that the little pantries increased access to food assistance, reduced stigma, and raised awareness of broader campus support. This model offers a promising complement to traditional food pantries and highlights the value of low-barrier, nonstigmatizing approaches to addressing college food insecurity.
Corresponding author Dr. Youngmi Kim can be contacted at ykim@vcu.edu.
KEY FINDINGS -
Increased accessibility and convenience: The Little Pantries offered 24/7, barrier-free access to food across multiple public campus locations, making them especially useful for students needing immediate support or with limited time and transportation options.
- Reduced stigma and normalization of food insecurity: Students reported that the visibility and ease of use of little pantries helped reduce shame and made food insecurity feel like a normalized, shared experience rather than a personal failure.
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Lack of awareness and institutional support: Students were often unaware of the food pantry on campus or found it difficult to access. Students emphasized the need for greater promotion, signage, and support from the university to reduce stigma and improve college food pantry utilization.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR POLICY, PRACTICE, AND RESEARCH
Promote visibility and normalize use of campus food resources: Institutions should increase signage, include pantry information in course syllabi and orientation materials, and actively publicize resources to reduce stigma and encourage utilization, especially among first-generation and underserved students.
Ensure consistent and adequate food supply across satellite pantries: To enhance food access, campuses should develop structured systems for regular restocking and quality control, possibly involving campus-community partnerships and institutional support.
Evaluate and expand inclusive, low-barrier pantry models: Future research should further explore the effectiveness of decentralized, no-barrier pantry models like Little Pantries across diverse college settings and student populations to inform scalable strategies addressing systemic food insecurity.
SHARE ON YOUR SOCIALS
Little Pantries, filled with grab-and-go food, are popping up in campus buildings to fight student hunger—no sign-ups, no shame, just support. Find out how this low-barrier model is changing the game for college students facing food insecurity. Read the full @JAFSCD for free: https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2025.144.010
#FoodInsecurity #CollegeLife #LittleRamPantries #VCU #BasicNeeds |
Photo above: A Little Ram Pantry installed at a library at Virginia Commonwealth University. Photo by Kevin Morley, University Marketing. |
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Books available for review
Like to review a book and share your thoughts with JAFSCD’s readers? Fill out the quick review query form linked on our home page (right margin, Engage with JAFSCD > Propose a Book Review). You can also use the form to suggest other books, films, or reports for review. The selected reviewer receives a free hard copy or e-book!
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Serving the Public: The Good Food Revolution in Schools, Hospitals and Prisons, by Kevin Morgan
From the publisher:
"A revealing account of what we feed our citizens in schools, hospitals and prisons. Access to good food is the litmus test of a society's commitment to social justice and sustainable development. This book explores the 'good food revolution' in public institutions, asking what broader lessons can be learned. Drawing on evidence from the UK, US and Sweden, Serving the Public highlights how public institutions are harnessing the power of purchase to secure public health, social justice and ecological integrity."
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Nourishing Resistance: Stories of Food, Protest, and Mutual Aid, edited by Wren Awry
From the publisher:
"From the cooks who have fed rebels and revolutionaries to the collective kitchens set up after ecological disasters, food has long played a crucial role in resistance, protest, and mutual aid. Nourishing Resistance centers these everyday acts of culinary solidarity. Twenty-three contributors—cooks, farmers, writers, organizers, academics, and dreamers—write on queer potlucks, rebel ancestors, disability justice, Indigenous food sovereignty, and the fight against toxic diet culture, among many other topics. . . . They look to the past . . . and the future, speculating on postcapitalist worlds that include both high-tech collective farms and herbs gathered beside highways."
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How to Create a Sustainable Food Industry, by Melissa Barrett, Massimo Marino, Francesca Brkic, and Carlo Alberto Pratesi
From the publisher:
"This book presents a practical guide to help businesses navigate the complex topics of sustainability in the food industry. The book takes you on a journey along the food value chain, from farm to fork, exploring key opportunities to increase positive impacts and circularity at each step of the journey. Written by a team of authors with decades of experience in the food industry and academia, it provides guidance on how to analyze sustainability across the value chain and life cycle of a food product and how to design, implement and communicate strategies to customers. . . . The book shows that there are not always straightforward solutions, but rather choices and trade-offs."
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Explore KPU’s SFSS program | |
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