Sustainable food? Teikei, co-operatives and food citizenship in Japan and the UK

Urban Farm DB summary

This paper explores how Teikei groups, as a form of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), operate in Japan, focusing on one particular group. The Teikei approach is linked to debates around social capital and consumer-citizenship, arguing that pre-existing consumer/citizen institutions can usefully be engaged in developing food citizenship and CSA operations. CSA involves bringing producers and consumers closer to aid food traceability and quality, and exhibits elements of agricultural governance based on enhanced consumer-citizenship, where consumers have a say in produce growth and land management.