Policy Nook — Policy Note: making water pivotal in the design of food systems

Water plays a crucial role in our food systems and food security. However, the essential role of water for a functioning food system and the impacts of food systems on water availability and quality have not yet been adequately recognized. Due to a lack of coordination among water and food systems a...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Hellegers, P., Schmitter, Petra S., Talbi, A., van Iwaarden, C.
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: World Scientific Publishing 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/173766
_version_ 1855522167335157760
author Hellegers, P.
Schmitter, Petra S.
Talbi, A.
van Iwaarden, C.
author_browse Hellegers, P.
Schmitter, Petra S.
Talbi, A.
van Iwaarden, C.
author_facet Hellegers, P.
Schmitter, Petra S.
Talbi, A.
van Iwaarden, C.
author_sort Hellegers, P.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Water plays a crucial role in our food systems and food security. However, the essential role of water for a functioning food system and the impacts of food systems on water availability and quality have not yet been adequately recognized. Due to a lack of coordination among water and food systems actors, there are siloed water, food security, and nutrition strategies. This paper presents the case to make water pivotal in designing food systems, laying out action perspectives for different actors to move toward what we call “water-responsible food systems”. This paper is based on input from many participants during workshops and existing literature. A food systems approach provides an excellent entry point to link food with water considering climate change and energy. Moreover, collective and cross-cutting actions between actors in food systems are essential to make decisive progress, as well as a common language and insight into the trade-offs of the multiple values of water for a clear prioritization of water use and allocation.
format Journal Article
id CGSpace173766
institution CGIAR Consortium
language Inglés
publishDate 2025
publishDateRange 2025
publishDateSort 2025
publisher World Scientific Publishing
publisherStr World Scientific Publishing
record_format dspace
spelling CGSpace1737662025-12-08T13:48:08Z Policy Nook — Policy Note: making water pivotal in the design of food systems Hellegers, P. Schmitter, Petra S. Talbi, A. van Iwaarden, C. food systems water resources food production food security water use sustainable development goals collective action stakeholders Water plays a crucial role in our food systems and food security. However, the essential role of water for a functioning food system and the impacts of food systems on water availability and quality have not yet been adequately recognized. Due to a lack of coordination among water and food systems actors, there are siloed water, food security, and nutrition strategies. This paper presents the case to make water pivotal in designing food systems, laying out action perspectives for different actors to move toward what we call “water-responsible food systems”. This paper is based on input from many participants during workshops and existing literature. A food systems approach provides an excellent entry point to link food with water considering climate change and energy. Moreover, collective and cross-cutting actions between actors in food systems are essential to make decisive progress, as well as a common language and insight into the trade-offs of the multiple values of water for a clear prioritization of water use and allocation. 2025-09 2025-03-21T05:28:39Z 2025-03-21T05:28:39Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/173766 en Open Access World Scientific Publishing Hellegers, P.; Schmitter, Petra; Talbi, A.; van Iwaarden, C. 2025. Policy Nook — Policy Note: making water pivotal in the design of food systems. Water Economics and Policy, 11(03):2471001. (Special issue on Innovations in Water Consumption Economics: Toward Sustainable Practices [Part 1]). doi: https://doi.org/10.1142/S2382624X24710012
spellingShingle food systems
water resources
food production
food security
water use
sustainable development goals
collective action
stakeholders
Hellegers, P.
Schmitter, Petra S.
Talbi, A.
van Iwaarden, C.
Policy Nook — Policy Note: making water pivotal in the design of food systems
title Policy Nook — Policy Note: making water pivotal in the design of food systems
title_full Policy Nook — Policy Note: making water pivotal in the design of food systems
title_fullStr Policy Nook — Policy Note: making water pivotal in the design of food systems
title_full_unstemmed Policy Nook — Policy Note: making water pivotal in the design of food systems
title_short Policy Nook — Policy Note: making water pivotal in the design of food systems
title_sort policy nook policy note making water pivotal in the design of food systems
topic food systems
water resources
food production
food security
water use
sustainable development goals
collective action
stakeholders
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/173766
work_keys_str_mv AT hellegersp policynookpolicynotemakingwaterpivotalinthedesignoffoodsystems
AT schmitterpetras policynookpolicynotemakingwaterpivotalinthedesignoffoodsystems
AT talbia policynookpolicynotemakingwaterpivotalinthedesignoffoodsystems
AT vaniwaardenc policynookpolicynotemakingwaterpivotalinthedesignoffoodsystems