Just Agri-Food Transitions: Assessing the Implications of Contrasting Decarbonisation Pathways for Small Businesses

Abstract

This article examines the position of small businesses within just transitions to net zero agri-food systems. Decarbonising global agri-food systems is fundamental to net zero goals. Decarbonisation processes have varying implications for different people and across different geographies, prompting concerns for equity and inclusion. In this context, there has been a growing concern for a ‘just transition’ to net zero. To date, small businesses have not been considered a concern for just transition, but examination of the agri-food system highlights their importance in achieving an inclusive and equitable transition. Drawing from a semi-systematic literature review, we provide a thematic analysis of agri-food transitions, synthesising a novel research agenda through combining agri-food just transition and small business decarbonisation scholarship. In our review, we (1) investigate existing understanding of the position of small businesses within agri-food transitions; (2) produce a framework to analyse implications for small firms under different transition pathways; and (3) outline the transition-induced justice considerations that arise. Highlighting key research gaps and moving beyond existing literature, we develop an archetypal transitions framework to conceptualise and better understand what a just transition for agri-food small businesses looks like in three different, but interrelated, pathways: (a) agri-food system localisation; (b) demand-led dietary transitions; and (c) intensive tech-led transitions. Analysing these pathways, we identify key points of opportunity and challenge for different types of business across the agri-food supply chain. Through case study examples, we uncover the interrelationships and trade-offs that net zero transitions create for small businesses. Providing broader implications for agri-food sustainability, our framework shapes future research avenues, allowing for rethinking of small business agri-food just transitions and reimagining more equitable agri-food systems, built upon solidarity.