Towards food supply chain resilience to environmental shocks

Davis, Kyle Frankel; Downs, Shauna; Gephart, Jessica A.

doi:10.1038/s43016-020-00196-3

Cited by 245 publications

(203 citation statements)

References 106 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

190

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The lack of research that examines the propagation of shocks through livestock supply chains limits our understanding of the true effects of COVID-19 on the livestock systems as a whole and the subsequent effects on food security. As noted by Davis et al [81], the interconnectedness of food systems entails that a shock that influences any stage of the supply chain will undoubtedly affect subsequent stages. Therefore, more consistent research endeavors are needed to develop better understanding of the dynamics of propagation of COVID-19 impacts across livestock supply chains in order to inform adequate interventions that can enhance the performance and sustainability of these chains and mitigate the food insecurity outcomes.…”

Section: Discussion and Implications For Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, lesser attention was given to the discussion of the two additional dimensions (agency and sustainability) that have recently been suggested and have become increasingly recognized as dimensions to achieving food security and sustainable food systems [82]. In this respect, Davis et al [81] point out that a shock, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, can generate differential effects on various dimensions of food security, which emphasizes the need to expand our understanding of the impact of shock events beyond their effects on production and food availability. An acknowledgement of all dimensions that drive food security and their interconnections is crucial in order to minimize systemic risks and enhance the capacity of developing countries to build resilience of livestock systems against future pandemics that can help achieve food security objectives [83].…”

Section: Discussion and Implications For Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

COVID-19, Livestock Systems and Food Security in Developing Countries: A Systematic Review of an Emerging Literature

2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In this paper, we carried out a systematic literature review to document the emerging scientific knowledge about COVID-19 impact on livestock systems and food security in developing countries to identify gaps and possible avenues for future research undertakings. Specifically, we systematically reviewed 68 peer-reviewed articles extracted based on rigorous selection criteria from Scopus, PubMed and ISI Web of Science databases and published between December 2019 and February 2021. Our results reveal that livestock supply chains presented an important ‘intermediary’ pathway through which the pandemic affected various dimensions of food security in developing countries. Although the research response has been rapid in terms of both quantity and temporal succession, we find a highly suggestive disjunction in studies analyzing the interconnections between COVID-19 pandemic, livestock systems and food security in developing countries. With respect to the livestock supply chain, the bulk of the reviewed evidence focuses on production and consumption, whereas considerably less focus is given to the pandemic’s impact on intermediaries within livestock chains, including traders, intermediaries and processors. The analysis of livestock supply chain resilience revolves predominantly around the ‘absorbance’ and ‘recovery’ phases of resilience, whereas only a small subset of the literature investigates actions taken by supply chain actors to ‘plan’ or to ‘adapt’ livestock systems in order to reduce their vulnerability and enhance their overall resilience. Furthermore, food security has often been narrowly defined, with the majority of articles focusing on ‘availability’ and ‘accessibility’ to food due to the pandemic, and other dimensions of food security, including utilization, stability and sustainability, have been widely neglected. Based on our findings, we recommend future research to examine the dynamics of propagation of COVID-19 impact through livestock supply chains in order to develop more targeted interventions that enhance the capacity of developing countries to cope with this and future disruptions and mitigate their food insecurity outcomes. To this end, more holistic, integrated and resilience-based approaches are much recommended to recognize the complex nature of livestock systems in developing countries and to address the multifaceted and widespread effects of COVID-19 on food security channeled through livestock chains.

show abstract

Section: Discussion and Implications For Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussion and Implications For Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

COVID-19, Livestock Systems and Food Security in Developing Countries: A Systematic Review of an Emerging Literature

2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…A city's food supply chains-like most supply chains-represent the agglomeration of efforts by many independent companies and logistics operations that grow, manufacture, ship, distribute, store and retail food products. It is a complex supply chain with many parts 44 . Translating the high-level design framework inherent to our proposed IDF model into actionable steps and effective regulations for individual operators remains a challenge for the future.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Supply chain diversity buffers cities against food shocks

Gomez

Mejía

Ruddell

et al. 2021

Nature

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Food supply shocks are increasing worldwide 1,2 , particularly the type of shock wherein food production or distribution loss in one location propagates through the food supply chain to other locations 3,4 . Analogous to biodiversity buffering ecosystems against external shocks 5,6 , ecological theory suggests that food supply chain diversity is crucial for managing the risk of food shock to human populations 7,8 . Here we show that boosting a city's food supply chain diversity increases the resistance of a city to food shocks of mild to moderate severity by up to 15 per cent. We develop an intensity-duration-frequency model linking food shock risk to supply chain diversity. The empirical-statistical model is based on annual food inflow observations from all metropolitan areas in the USA during the years 2012 to 2015, years when most of the country experienced moderate to severe droughts. The model explains a city's resistance to food shocks of a given frequency, intensity and duration as a monotonically declining function of the city's food inflow supply chain's Shannon diversity. This model is simple, operationally useful and addresses any kind of hazard. Using this method, cities can improve their resistance to food supply shocks with policies that increase the food supply chain's diversity.

show abstract

“…Comparing socioeconomic indicators across income groups, it is observed that countries with higher incomes tend to perform better; however, even high-income countries, such as Australia and the United States, have not eradicated under-nourishment, which actually has deteriorated over the past decade and may be further aggravated due to sudden social crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. 48 In contrast, Ethiopia has made great progress in eliminating under-nourishment in past decades, but the country's under-nourishment indicator is still in the red threshold (Figure 4).…”

Section: Tracking Progress Overtimementioning

confidence: 99%