Priority · 2 of 6
Food
The food system is structurally fragile: high import dependency, ageing farmers, and squeezed margins.
A resilient food system means fresher food, more local jobs, and landscapes that are farmed rather than abandoned. It is also a daily way to participate: what we buy shapes what is grown.
Food is the most relatable entry point for public and philanthropic capital. Outcomes — hectares converted, farmers supported, procurement shifted — are concrete and easy to communicate. The strongest case is for supply-chain and infrastructure finance.
Food sovereignty aligns with the Catalan Law on Food Sovereignty, the Plan for Agroecological Transition, and municipal food councils. It is a defensible area for public procurement reform and rural-development co-financing.
Food connects everyone: eaters, cooks, farmers, activists, and municipalities. It is the easiest priority to build coalitions around, and the one where everyday choices translate into systemic demand.
Diagnosis
The farming population is ageing rapidly, and the succession crisis is acute: many farms have no identified next generation. Without new entrants, knowledge, seeds, and landscape-maintaining practices disappear.
Prices at the farm gate rarely cover the full cost of ecological production, while supermarkets and processors capture most of the value. The result is a squeeze that drives consolidation, specialisation, and environmental degradation.
Indicator
Caloric import dependency
Source and method medium confidence
Source Eurostat / Spanish agricultural statistics — placeholder
Licence Public — to be verified
Last verified 2026-08-01
Source and method to be verified against Catalan agricultural accounts.
Leverage
Agroecological training, land access, and cooperative infrastructure are the inputs that let new farmers enter. Land tenure and community ownership models reduce the capital barrier that currently blocks succession.
Seed sovereignty, local mills, and processing facilities are critical infrastructure: without them, farmers cannot capture value, and consumers cannot choose regional food.
Capital stack
Community land trusts and cooperative farms need patient capital to secure land outside speculative markets.
Cooperatives, shared processing, and logistics need working capital and equipment finance that conventional banks cannot price.
Food tech, distribution platforms, and circular packaging ventures can be financed with early-stage equity.
Regional aggregation platforms and processing hubs can absorb larger, structured capital with measurable impact.
Who is already doing it
64 organizations and 0 programs mapped on this site are tagged with this priority.
Sources
- Llei de Sobirania Alimentària i Drets dels Pagesos accessed 2026-08-01
- Pla de Transició Agroecològica de Catalunya accessed 2026-08-01