Architecture, Building and Planning - Research Publications

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    BUILDING THE RESILIENCE OF MELBOURNE’S FOOD SYSTEM – A ROADMAP A Foodprint Melbourne Report May 2022
    Carey, R ; Murphy, M ; Alexandra, L ; Sheridan, J ; Larsen, K ; McGill, E (University of Melbourne, 2022-01-01)
    This report from the Foodprint Melbourne research project presents a roadmap of strategies and policy approaches for strengthening the resilience of Melbourne’s food system to shocks and stresses. It focuses particularly on shocks and stresses related to climate change and pandemic, but also considers underlying food system stresses, such as high levels of food waste and declining supplies of the natural resources that underpin food production. The combined effects of these shocks and stresses undermine the resilience of food systems, drive up food prices and increase food insecurity. The report identifies six key areas of opportunity for action to strengthen the resilience of Melbourne’s food system to future shocks and stresses.
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    Roadmap for a resilient and sustainable Melbourne foodbowl
    Carey, R ; Larsen, K ; Sheridan, J (University of Melbourne, 2019)
    This report outlines a vision and roadmap for preserving Melbourne’s foodbowl for current and future generations as a fundamental building block in a healthy, resilient, sustainable and fair food system. This vision and ‘roadmap’ was developed through a collaborative process involving a wide range of stakeholders. Key elements include: Planning for a sustainable and resilient city foodbowl requires an integrated policy approach Five key pillars of policy action underpin a resilient and sustainable city foodbowl – farmland protection, farm viability, water access, nutrient recycling and sustainable farming Farmland should be permanently protected on Melbourne’s fringe by maintaining Melbourne’s Urban Growth Boundary, mapping agricultural land and introducing a new agricultural ‘zone’ Promoting the viability of farming in Melbourne’s foodbowl is as important as protecting farmland Farm viability should be promoted by investing in infrastructure that enables small-medium scale farmers to gain greater control of supply chains, ensuring that peri-urban producers are able to access relevant funding streams and applying local government ‘farm rates’ to all actively farmed land Water reuse for food production should be increased to address water scarcity in a warming climate Water reuse should be increased by adopting an integrated water management approach to managing water assets in farming areas, developing integrated assessment frameworks to cost delivery of recycled water and investigating options for greater reuse of storm water City foodbowls offer opportunities to close the loop by returning valuable nutrients from city organic waste back to the soil Nutrient recycling on farm should be promoted by preventing contamination of organic waste streams, collaborating with farmers to develop ‘fit for purpose’ compost products and establishing a Melbourne Nutrient Recycling Network Sustainable farming should be incentivised in Melbourne’s foodbowl Sustainable farming approaches should be incentivised through local government rate rebates, direct payments and extension services aimed at peri-urban farmers A diverse range of sustainable farming approaches should be promoted to increase the resilience of the city’s food system, including regenerative and agroecological approaches as well as sustainable intensification and closed-environment agriculture
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    Food for thought: Challenges and opportunities for farming in Melbourne's foodbowl
    Carey, R ; Sheridan, J ; Larsen, K (University of Melbourne, 2018)
    This report identifies the policy challenges that need to be addressed and the opportunities that could be leveraged to strengthen Melbourne’s foodbowl. The report focuses on three key policy issues: protecting farmland, strengthening the viability of farming and increasing water access.
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    Pathways 2040. Results from Visions and Pathways 2040: Scenarios and Pathways to Low Carbon Living
    Candy, S ; larsen, K ; Twomey, P ; McGrail, S ; Ryan, C (VEIL, 2017)
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    Creative Food Economies Part 2 - Actions for Southern Melbourne
    LARSEN, K ; Rose, N (VEIL, 2013)
    The food and farming sector in southern Melbourne is in transition, as are food systems all around the world. These transitions are being driven from behind – by conflicts over prime farmland, changing resource prices and physical constraints of some key inputs, the pressures of global competition for trade-exposed sectors, skilled labour shortages, and a rapidly changing climate. But they are also being pulled from ahead. The rapidly expanding populations of Casey, Cardinia and Mornington Peninsula – along with the northern parts of the Southern Melbourne region (reaching into Melbourne) represent opportunities – there is a large and increasing segment of this population that want healthy, ethical, sustainable and locally produced food. A local or regional food economy suggests food that is grown, processed and sold primarily for local or regional markets, contrasting with commodities produced for national and global markets. The movement for local and regional food – alongside demand for ethical and sustainable food production practices – is growing rapidly, both in Australia and around the world. In North America, Japan, the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe, it has grown so rapidly that it is possible to speak of a still young but maturing ‘creative food economy’. In many regions, these have been the most dynamic and innovative sector of the food economy for the past two decades, ‘comprised mainly of specialty, local, ethnic and organic food-processing firms that are thriving in response to consumers’ demands for high-quality, local, fresh, ethnic and fusion cuisine’.1 Demand for local and regional foods is especially strong2, driven in part by the ‘dissociation between traditional large firms and the local consumer base’,3 itself a consequence of a globalised food system that produces ‘food from nowhere’4. This is all good news for economic development in southern Melbourne. Given a market of four million customers on its doorstep, projected to reach six million or more by 2030, the opportunities for the creative food economy in this region are immense. This emerging ‘creative food economy’ can exist and flourish alongside a more traditional food sector – it is not a choice of either / or. Building momentum in creative, entrepreneurial food businesses in this region, attracting and retaining diverse agricultural and value-adding businesses will increase the vibrancy and prosperity of the region as a whole, attracting businesses and investment, creating thousands of new jobs, supporting the necessary transition to healthier eating and living, and encouraging producers to move towards ecologically sustainable methods of production.
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    How Can Food Hubs Catalyse Healthy and Resilient Local Food Systems in Victoria: Developing a Food Hub in the City of Casey. Report on Phase 1
    LARSEN, K (VEIL, 2012)
    Can ‘Food Hubs’ catalyse and support local food systems in Victoria and Australia? Phase 1: Mapping of the ‘state of play’ in Casey’s local / regional food
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    How Can Food Hubs Catalyse Healthy and Resilient Local Food Systems in Victoria: Developing a Food Hub in the City of Casey. Report on Phase 2
    LARSEN, K (VEIL, 2013)
    Can ‘Food Hubs’ catalyse and support local food systems in Victoria and Australia? Phase 2: Hub and system’ design work
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    Understanding Victoria’s Fruit and Vegetable Freight Movements
    Marquez, L ; Higgins, A ; Estrada-Flores, S ; LARSEN, K (VEIL, 2010)
    This report outlines the methodology and results of Part 2 of a three-part project initiated by the Victorian Eco-Innovation Lab (VEIL), which aimed to shed light on greenhouse gas emissions and vulnerabilities in Victoria’s food freight systems. The operations of the food industry can transform agricultural raw materials into safe, convenient, good tasting and nutritious products for consumers. However, to continue profitably doing so, it is becoming increasingly important to be more environmentally sustainable (particularly in terms of GHG emissions) and resilient to a changing agricultural landscape, oil price fluctuations, markets and weather variability. While the greenhouse emissions from agriculture (12.9% of Victoria’s total emissions) are increasingly well understood, emissions generated throughout the supply chain are considerably less so. Post-farmgate activities include packaging, processing, transport, storage, retail etc. These supply chains are complex and variable. A summary of existing knowledge is contained within this report and that from Part 3 of the project. The horticulture industry in Australia is valued at $3.5 billion and in Victoria is worth $1.3 billion per annum. An improved understanding of the factors affecting greenhouse emissions, fuel use and potential vulnerabilities in the supply chains of these products will be important to their ongoing viability. The analysis outlined in this report is intended to contribute to an increased understanding of how fruit and vegetables are moved from production to consumers in Victoria and the greenhouse emissions implications of this operation. The analysis is focused only on the transport components of the supply chain, including refrigeration within transport where required, but it does not include energy use of emissions from production, processing, packaging etc. It should not be understood as a lifecycle analysis, it is intended only to increase understanding regarding the transport components of food (particularly fruit and vegetable) supply chains in Victoria.
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    Food Freight - Best Practice Food Distribution Systems
    Estrada-Flores, S ; LARSEN, K (VEIL, 2010)