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Abstract: This comparative literature review of local food systems, short food supply chains, and civic food networks, subsumed under alternative food networks (AFN), suggests converging them into the novel umbrella-term values-based territorial food networks (VTFN). Based on the analysis of specificities and shortcomings in the four concepts, VTFN aims to enhance conceptual clarity, while the current coexistence conceals structural and systemic commonalities—relevant for understanding pathways to ethical and sustainable food system transformations. Taking stock of issues in the four concepts, VTFN strives to be overarching and pragmatic. It qualifies AFN's "alternativeness" through social, economic, environmental and governance "sustainability values" and through the co-construction of "territoriality" in varying constellations. Thus, it fosters integrated scientific dialogue about conceptual determinations of emerging networks of food system transitions worldwide.Resumen: Esta revisión bibliográfica comparativa de los sistemas alimentarios locales, las cadenas cortas de suministro de alimentos y las redes alimentarias cívicas, comprendidas en las redes alimentarias alternativas (RAA), sugiere englobarlas en el novedoso término redes alimentarias territoriales basadas en valores (RATV). Basándose en un análisis de especificidades y deficiencias, el RATV aporta claridad conceptual, en contraste con la coexistencia de los conceptos analizados que oculta puntos estructurales y sistémicos en común relevantes para entender las vías para transformar los sistemas alimentarios éticos y sostenibles. Reflexionando sobre los cuatro conceptos, la RATV busca ser global y pragmática. Califica lo "alternativo" de las RAA a través de "valores de sostenibilidad" sociales, económicos, medioambientales y de gobernanza, y de la co-construcción de la "territorialidad" en constelaciones diversas. Por ello, fomenta el diálogo científico integrado sobre las determinaciones conceptuales de las redes emergentes de transiciones de los sistemas alimentarios en todo el mundo.Résumé : Cet article se consacre à une revue de littérature comparative des concepts de Systèmes Alimentaires Locaux (Local Food Systems – LFS), Circuits Courts et de Proximité (Short Food Supply Chains – SFSC), Réseaux Alimentaires Civiques (Civic Food Networks – CFN), rassemblés sous le concept ombrelle de Réseaux Alimentaires Alternatifs (Alternative Food Networks – AFN). Il propose ensuite de les converger en un nouveau concept ombrelle, nommé Réseaux Alimentaires Éthiques et Territoriaux (Values-Based Territorial Food Networks – VTFN). Basé sur l'analyse des spécificités et des faiblesses des quatre concepts courants dans la littérature scientifique, la notion de VTFN apporte une clarté conceptuelle, car la coexistence actuelle de plusieurs concepts masque des points communs structuraux et systémiques – pourtant essentiels pour comprendre les processus de transformations éthiques et durables des systèmes alimentaires. Tout en puisant dans les apports des quatre concepts courants, la notion de VTFN aspire à être englobante et pragmatique. Elle qualifie les aspects "alternatifs" des Réseaux Alimentaires Alternatifs (Alternative Food Networks – AFN) par un cadre de quatre ensembles-clés de "valeurs de durabilité" – que sont l'intégrité environnementale, le bien-être social, la gouvernance éthique et la résilience économique –, ainsi que par une co-construction de "territorialité" en constellations variables. Ainsi, le concept de VTFN favorise un dialogue scientifique intégré sur les déterminations conceptuelles de réseaux émergents de transitions des systèmes alimentaires mondiaux.

Basé sur deux études empiriques, conjointement quantitatives et qualitatives, menées dans le contexte de deux projets interdisciplinaires à l'Université du Luxembourg (IDENT – Identités socio-culturelles et politiques identitaires au Luxembourg (2007-2010) et IDENT2 – Processus de régionalisation et constructions identitaires dans des espaces transfrontaliers (2011-2016)), l'argumentaire porte sur l'interface régionalité / saisonnalité tant au Grand-Duché que dans les régions limitrophes. En effet, dans les populations considérées, la régionalité comme qualification alimentaire prime largement sur la saisonnalité, qui, elle, demande une réflexivité et une conscience agricole plus importante. Mais la forme locavore de la notion de régionalité est actuellement une tendance montante et elle favorise, justement, une (re)prise de conscience des contextes géolocalisés de la production alimentaire. Sa diffusion pourrait avoir un impact positif sur la saisonnalité tant dans les représentations que dans les pratiques des consommateurs – en tant que facteur de réduction d'émissions liées au transport, de potentiel d'identification communautaire et de valorisation locale, ainsi que de lutte contre le gaspillage alimentaire.

Moments of crisis like the current one sparked by Covid-19, engage social, economic, cultural and political institutions of a society and stress-test their resourcefulness, while individual and collective food supplies become primary concerns. Where does even the wealthiest of EU member States stand when it comes to food sovereignty and specific vulnerabilities, what needs to change and which food policies are needed to facilitate a sustainable food system – both locally and internationally? Combining qualitative, empirical research methods to textual and statistical analysis, as well as transformative research, I focus on key areas of Luxembourg's food system presenting challenges – specific ones and structural ones intertwined with issues in other countries – and discuss current and planned pathways of optimisation. I will start out with an analysis of agricultural and commercial specificities of a food system with low self-sufficiency rates, linked to meat and dairy specialisations, but also to market accessibility and market structure issues, leading to heavy imports. I will then shed light on pathways currently put into practice by the State, by economic actors, by educational actors and by social movements and coalitions of the willing, advocating ecological, ethical and qualitative production methods. Finally, I will show how the first Food Policy Council at national level that Luxembourg is currently founding is favoring a deliberate shift towards a multi-stakeholder-lead effective food policy.

Some resourceful community-driven initiatives for local food production and retail have recently appeared in Luxembourg, where low organic agricultural rates are paradoxically paired with high consumer demands. This niche of social innovators combines agroecology with circular economy practices. Four cases of alternative food networks are presented here – studied with qualitative interviews and participant observation. One was established in the 1980s and has about 200 employees, partly linked to social assistance. The more recent and smaller initiatives are characterised by cooperative governance, a community-supported agricultural outlook, hands-on workshops and time banks, all enabled by social media. These initiatives are more radical in their agro-ecological or permaculture practices, focusing on regenerative land use without relying on imports and fostering the integration of consumers with varying degrees of prosumer involvement. This politicised step goes further than mere (and possibly industrialised) organic production. It represents a cultural shift in the food system by attracting media and policy interest, diverting attention away from individuals and focusing instead on the collective efforts that are necessary to build a more resilient food system.

Recently, a number of resourceful community-driven initiatives for local food production and retail have arisen in Luxembourg, where low organic agricultural rates are paired with high consumer demands for organic produce. The main impact that heterodox actors can have seems to be the creation of resourcefulness from innovative niches, not designed to be upscaled but spread by ubiquitous networking. The motivations of actors involved in such social movements, albeit diverse, tend to stem from a stance of care and ethical (self)government, often using community self-organisation-tools. Based on qualitative interviews and participant observation, we expand on four case studies of fruit and vegetable production as well as unpackaged and socially responsible food retail in Luxembourg. One has been established since the 1980s with over 200 employees, partly in social insertion measures, producing and importing organic fruit and vegetables. Since 2014, three significantly smaller initiatives with higher citizen involvement have emerged. These recent initiatives are more radical in their agro-ecological and/or permaculture practices, proposing a political enacting of circular economy precepts. Yet, daily practices stay embedded in social, cultural and economic constraints and in routines, which are built on tacit knowledge, collective learning and engrained practices; even though repetitive, they can account for both reproduction and innovation. By analysing ethical entrepreneurship and the governmentality at its core as well as ambivalences and paradoxes between mundane and deliberate forms of consumption, this paper touches on interrelations between food policies and the politics of contested claims for, and practices of, social and environmental justice.

Recently, a number of resourceful community-driven initiatives for local food production and retail have arisen in Luxembourg, where low organic agricultural rates are paired with high consumer demands for organic produce, leading to a largely imported organic market. As an encompassing reaction, a niche of social innovators are combining agro-ecological land use and food production with locavorousness and circular economy. Based on qualitative interviews and participant observation, we expand on four case studies of fruit and vegetable production as well as unpackaged and/or socially responsible food retail in today's Luxembourg. One has been established since the 1980s with over 200 employees, partly in social insertion measures, producing and importing organic fruit and vegetables. Since 2014, three significantly smaller initiatives with higher citizen involvement have emerged, with a cooperative governance structure, a claimed community-supported agricultural outlook, a dynamic presence on social media and regular hands-on workshops and activities. These recent initiatives are more radical in their agro-ecological and/or permaculture practices. In a renewed enacting of circular economy precepts, they focus on local production without relying on imports, as a politicized step further than (possibly industrialized) organic production. Grounded in heterodox experiences of alternative actors in food production and retail niches, we analyse ethical entrepreneurship and the governmentality at its core, political enabling or disabling structures and regulations, as well as commodification and upscaling issues. Therefore, this paper touches on governance interrelations between food policies and politics the politics of contested claims for, and practices of, social and environmental justice.

Good for Me and Good For My Region. The Ambivalences of Responsible Everyday Food Literacy Between Self-Referentiality and Locavoracity. This paper is based on two interdisciplinary empirical surveys at the University of Luxembourg (quantitative and qualitative), carried out in the transnational context of Luxembourg and the surrounding Greater Region, allowing for comparative results of consumption dynamics between regions in Luxembourg, Germany, France and Belgium. It aims to analyse everyday appropriations of 'responsible' eating habits – seen as a set of plural ways of how people put into practice plural ideas of sustainability. To find out by which motivations the motor for 'responsible' consumption is driven, the notion of sustainability is characterised by quantitative indicators of possible sustainability in the food domain, relating to consumed foods or to individual criteria of food selection. Subsequently, qualitative interviews provide insights into the meanings of, and values behind, those indicators, uncovering everyday priorities, appropriations and strategies of consumption, as well as its justifications in a perspective of spatial identification. By contrasting arguments about food consumption ideals and practices, the results show a marked dialectic between self-referentiality and a general interest in food's provenance, understood as regionally produced. This 'locavorous' form of regionality favours a (new) consciousness of geolocalized context of food production, which may, in turn, have an impact on the overall food literacy, increasingly seen as a political field of citizen action for lowering carbon transport emissions, fostering community identifications and anchoring local socio-economic valorizations. This shows which aspects of the polysemic idea of sustainability are relevant to consumers' preoccupations, and to what extent consumers are reflexive in their 'responsible' food choices.

Recently, a number of resourceful community-driven initiatives for local food production and retail have arisen in Luxembourg, in a context of particularly low organic agricultural rates paradoxically paired with high consumer demands for organic produce, leading to a specific market of largely imported organic goods. As an encompassing reaction to this situation, a niche of social innovators are combining agro-ecological land use and food production with locavoracity and circular economy. Based on qualitative in-depth interviews and participant observation, we would like to expand on four micro-case studies of circular-economy-type fruit and vegetable production as well as unpackaged and/or socially responsible food retail in today's Luxembourg. One has been established since the 1980s with over 150 employees, partly in social insertion measures, producing and importing organic fruits and vegetables, delivered via a classical box scheme system. Additionally, over the last three years three significantly smaller initiatives with higher citizen and/or community involvement have emerged. They are characterized by a cooperative governance structure, a claimed community-supported agricultural outlook, a more dynamic presence on social media and regular hands-on workshops and activities. These more recent initiatives are also more radical in their agro-ecological and/or permaculture practices, focusing on local production without relying on imports, as a politicized step further than mere (possibly industrialized) organic production, which is an altogether renewed enacting of circular economy precepts. Yet their position on the market is for the moment more fragile and marginal. Particularly, the retailers among them have to build creative consensus – according to specific priorities and stances – between their standards and the adjustment to consumers who, albeit sensitized, are in search for a certain variety and convenience. By focusing on heterodox experiences of more or less established alternative actors in diverse yet complementary food production and retail niches, we will explore topics such as emotional collective commitment and consensus-building, ethical entrepreneurship in relation to possibly reframed standards over time, governmentality, political enabling or disabling structures and regulations, as well as commodification and upscaling issues. Therefore, this paper touches on political processes and strategies, urban agro-ecological practices as well as post-capitalist economics.

L'esthétisation actuelle et l'hyper-différenciation des vins en fonction de leur terroir (lui-même défini comme conjointement naturel et humain) s'inscrit dans un processus historique de rationalisation plus large. Dans le cas du vin, trois vecteurs (la régulation étatique, la consolidation scientifique et la diffusion médiatique) ont été décisifs, depuis le XIXe siècle, dans la cristallisation de l'œnophilie. Cette figure culturelle – institutionnalisée au point d'être enseignée dans des cours étatiques de formation continue pour adultes, au Grand-Duché de Luxembourg – puise précisément dans la normativité épistémique des trois vecteurs, qui ont tous mis en évidence, pour l'utiliser en fonction de leurs positions respectives, l'importance de la provenance géographique des vins. D'abord, je me concentrerai sur le vecteur étatique, qui a le pouvoir d'intégrer des aspects des deux autres et dont la performativité est la plus élevée : l'implication de l'Etat luxembourgeois dans la viticulture construite comme proprement nationale. Le contrôle étatique comporte un volet économico-juridique et un volet politico-symbolique, dont des exemples concrets (tant législatifs que culturels) montreront qu'ils se renforcent réciproquement, pour aboutir à un usage métonymique d'une 'terre natale' inaliénable, se prêtant à une mémorisation et à une identification topophile collective. De leur côté, les œnologues-chargés de cours, en tant que médiateurs scientifiques, se basent sur la notion de terroir pour en déduire les caractéristiques sensorielles des échantillons, mais également, dans une extrapolation politique, la démarche anti-industrielle des producteurs de ces vins. Ce faisant, ils véhiculent une normativité épistémique, posant d'emblée l'analysabilité du vin (ce qui est socialement spécifique) et faisant un usage moral de la science. Elle pourvoit les individus consommateurs de rapports à soi – qui sont censés les autonomiser, alors qu'ils canalisent leurs jugements.

Le marquage des chairs à des fins esthétiques, identitaires ou politiques (tatouages, piercings, scarifications, implants, amputations, etc.), la chirurgie, le transsexualisme, les biotechnologiques, l'entraînement sportif et le dopage, constituent autant de pratiques visant à modifier un corps qu'il s'agit d'amplifier, d'embellir, de réparer ou d'altérer. Ces effractions parfois radicales, ces blessures volontaires, ces inscriptions éphémères ou définitives, visibles ou secrètes, posent la question de l'acceptable et du respect de la norme corporelle. Elles ouvrent la perspective concrète d'esquiver ou d'infléchir le destin biologique et social. Les stratégies identitaires s'incarnent alors dans l'effacement ou la revendication des différences, la quête ou le refus des canons esthétiques.

Le marquage des chairs à des fins esthétiques, identitaires ou politiques (tatouages, piercings, scarifications, implants, amputations, etc.), la chirurgie, le transsexualisme, les biotechnologiques, l'entraînement sportif et le dopage, constituent autant de pratiques visant à modifier un corps qu'il s'agit d'amplifier, d'embellir, de réparer ou d'altérer. Ces effractions parfois radicales, ces blessures volontaires, ces inscriptions éphémères ou définitives, visibles ou secrètes, posent la question de l'acceptable et du respect de la norme corporelle. Elles ouvrent la perspective concrète d'esquiver ou d'infléchir le destin biologique et social. Les stratégies identitaires s'incarnent alors dans l'effacement ou la revendication des différences, la quête ou le refus des canons esthétiques.

Le marquage des chairs à des fins esthétiques, identitaires ou politiques (tatouages, piercings, scarifications, implants, amputations, etc.), la chirurgie, le transsexualisme, les biotechnologiques, l'entraînement sportif et le dopage, constituent autant de pratiques visant à modifier un corps qu'il s'agit d'amplifier, d'embellir, de réparer ou d'altérer. Ces effractions parfois radicales, ces blessures volontaires, ces inscriptions éphémères ou définitives, visibles ou secrètes, posent la question de l'acceptable et du respect de la norme corporelle. Elles ouvrent la perspective concrète d'esquiver ou d'infléchir le destin biologique et social. Les stratégies identitaires s'incarnent alors dans l'effacement ou la revendication des différences, la quête ou le refus des canons esthétiques.

In this session, we would like to discuss the impact, risks and motivations of producers and consumers altering foodscapes. Of particular interest are enabling types of governance that improve ecological balance and social justice in policies of governmental regulation and institutions but also in the politics of for example alternative food movements. The main impact that heterodox actors can have seems to be, on one hand, the creation of resourcefulness from innovative niches, not designed to be upscaled but spread by ubiquitous networking and, on the other hand, the exemplification of heterodox economic practices that reduce the current deskilling of producers and consumers and the depletion of natural resources. The risk associated with heterodox initiatives is, besides basic economic viability, territorial competition over land and resources, as well as – more insidiously – the potential of co-option by neoliberal corporate agendas. The motivations of actors involved in such social movements, albeit diverse, tend to stem from a stance of care and ethical (self)government, often using community self-organisation-tools. Such an analysis of food value chain practices focuses on negotiations and struggles among actors in a multifaceted foodscape, where some block and some enhance transitions. Viewing the relationships, interconnectedness and agency of niche innovations and regime hegemonies opens up the perspective of contested knowledge claims. Additionally, the ways in which actors in the regulatory field advance transitions by policy measures and initiatives need to be considered, and in particular the processes of politicization as interdependencies between movement actors and the public sphere. Yet, the daily practices stay embedded in social, cultural and economic constraints and in routines, which are built on tacit knowledge, collective learning and engrained practices; even though repetitive, they can account for both reproduction and innovation. Which types of governance at all levels have shown themselves to be effective in supporting and empowering such bottom-up changes in "knowing and growing food in a contested arena" (Goodman, DuPuis, Goodman, 2014)?