Getting the Ingredients Right - Drivers and Hindrances for Food Sustainability Transitions

Abstract: In Sweden, what we eat accounts for about a third of the consumption-based greenhouse gas emissions, and there is strong evidence that the most effective way to reduce emissions is to switch to a more plant-based diet. A shift is currently underway in the Swedish food system; the market for plant-based products is showing an exponential growth, coupled with, for the first time since the 1950s, a decrease of meat consumption. The thesis explores this emerging transition, with the aim to understand and outline the developments that have influenced it. Consequently, the research questions concern what drives respectively hinders the emerging transition. Guided by the aim, the thesis is constructed as a qualitative case study, where the theoretical framework of a Multi-Level Perspective modified for food systems, structure the case. To provide answers to the research questions stated, a range of text documents is sourced online and subject to content analysis. Results suggest that, affected by aligned developments that have shifted consumer preferences, the consumers are the driving forces of the emerging transition, with their everyday choices. The hindrances are connected to inadequate conditions in the industry and political domains, prolonging the transition. This thesis concludes that there is a contemporary consumer pressure for a transition of the food system, however, in order for the emerging transition to be successful, the right conditions need to be in place.