From Policy to Plate: Making Food Systems Work

To investigate how food policy actually plays out for small businesses and local food—where it genuinely creates opportunities, and where policy instead becomes a barrier—we focus our analysis on three policy strands: the CAP (Common Agricultural Policy), Farm to Fork and quality schemes. In this process, the same policy can be either an opportunity or an obstacle for a small farm or small workshop, depending on how it is designed and whether the accompanying support is adequately in place. The following sections break down, one by one, to figure how these three policies actually land in practice for small businesses.

The European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is one of the world’s largest agricultural policies and the EU’s longest-standing policy (European Commission, n.d.-b). Initially focused primarily on supporting agricultural production and farmers’ incomes, it has since gradually incorporated a range of tools to support the environment (Pe'er et al., 2019). Nevertheless, the general public in the EU widely believes that the CAP still does not do enough to address ongoing environmental degradation and climate change (92% of non-farmers and 64% of farmers share this view) (Pe'er et al., 2019). In May and June 2018, the European Commission (EC) published its financial plans and legislative proposals for the CAP post-2020, prompting a large number of amendments that will need to be considered by the newly elected European Parliament (EP) (Pe'er et al., 2019). As the reform entered its final phase with budget negotiations and the "trilogue" among the European Commission, the Council, and the European Parliament due to begin in autumn 2019, this article asks whether the post-2020 CAP proposal can meet the EU's key sustainability challenges and the public's demand for stronger environmental performance.

The Farm to Fork (F2F) strategy, launched in May 2020, sits at the heart of the European Green Deal (European Commission, n.d.-c). It aims to make the food system "fair, healthy, and environmentally friendly," and sets out concrete targets for 2030: halving the use and risk of chemical pesticides, cutting nutrient losses by half, reducing fertiliser use by a fifth, and raising the share of farmland under organic production to at least 25%.

Opportunities:

In terms of its rhetoric and objectives, the F2F strategy is favourable to smallholder farmers and local food systems (European Commission, n.d.-c). First, the strategy explicitly lists “shortening supply chains, developing local markets, and improving farmers’ bargaining power within the food chain” as key directions, and proposes strengthening the collective bargaining power of dispersed smallholder farmers by supporting “producer organizations.” Second, the 25% organic land target opens up a premium market for small farms that are already operated in an extensive and diversified manner. Furthermore, organic farmers can benefit from subsidies under the First Pillar’s “eco-schemes” and gain access to traditional and locally adapted seed varieties, precisely the comparative advantages smallholders hold over large-scale, monoculture farming.

Barriers:

On the other hand, the design of its implementation may cause the F2F program to end up working as a barrier.

First, the costs of transition are primarily borne by farmers: shifting to sustainable practices requires financial investment, and smallholders have the weakest resilience to risk. Secondly, the high costs of organic certification and heavy paperwork weigh most on the smallest producers, and such regulatory burdens can effectively exclude smallholders from formal markets and short supply chains (Muñoz, 2025). Thirdly, F2F itself has no independent budget; its ambitions rely heavily on CAP funding and the willingness of member states to implement the program, once supporting subsidies and market infrastructure are lacking, it is often large farms that can actually absorb the transition costs, while smallholder farmers are further squeezed out. This precisely confirms your core argument: for the same strategy, adequate support creates opportunities, while a lack of support creates barriers.

Now we focus on the third Policy, the framework primarily refers to the EU’s quality schemes, Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), Protected Geographical Indication (PGI), and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG), whose legal basis is Regulation (EU) No. 1151/2012 as well as the CAP’s supporting measures for short supply chains and local markets.

Opportunities：

Geographical Indications (PDO/PGI/TSG) are “official certification labels” issued by the European Union for food products that meet the criteria of “specific origin + traditional production methods.” For example, Parma ham and Feta. Only products actually made in those specific locations using traditional methods are permitted to bear these names. The legal basis for this is Regulation (EU) No 1151/ 2012(European Union, 2012).

The LEADER Rural Development Fund is a pool of funds that supports small rural projects through EU financial assistance.

A short supply chain involves fewer intermediaries, with farmers selling their products directly or nearly directly to consumers, rather than going through multiple layers of wholesalers before reaching large supermarkets.

How does this benefit small-scale producers?

First, certification labels serve as a “brand” for small-scale producers. With this certification, products can command higher prices and gain greater recognition; the name is legally protected, preventing others from misusing it, which in turn curbs counterfeiting and unfair competition. This advantage cannot be achieved simply by scaling up operations but rather through uniqueness—making it particularly beneficial for small, distinctive producers.

Second, CAP’s funding and organizational support help small farmers band together, promote their products, and establish short supply chains.

Third, short supply chains reduce the commissions and price pressure imposed by middlemen and large supermarkets, allowing farmers to retain more of their profits. This is particularly important for small workshops and family farms. According to data from the EU CAP Network, in 2024 alone, nearly 135,000 farming households benefited from the collective bargaining power of producer organizations (European Commission, 2025).

Barriers：

However, from another perspective, the costs of entering and maintaining market access may actually exclude the smallest producers.

First, certification, compliance, and cumbersome administrative procedures place a disproportionate burden on small producers. To obtain PDO or PGI status, producers must first form a collective organization, draft a formal product specification, and undergo long-term inspections by independent bodies. With high barriers to entry and lengthy processes, small producers often cannot afford the time and resources required (Cardoso et al., 2022).

Second, while geographical indications serve as a shared brand for many small producers, the benefits are not distributed evenly. Within the same production area, large-scale farmers who already have scale and established sales channels are more likely to secure large orders and capture the majority of the premium; smaller members, despite bearing the same label, receive only a limited share of the profits due to their small output and lack of distribution channels (Cardoso et al., 2022).

Third, even after obtaining certification, local markets and short-chain logistics and distribution channels remain limited. Without the support of an organization, small-scale farmers find it difficult to sell their products directly to consumers on their own. Therefore, this aspect becomes a barrier.

Reference List

Cardoso, V. A., Lourenzani, A. E. B. S., Caldas, M. M., Bernardo, C. H. C., & Bernardo, R. (2022). The benefits and barriers of geographical indications to producers: A review. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems, 37(6), 707–719. https://doi.org/10.1017/S174217052200031X

European Commission. (n.d.-a). The common agricultural policy. Retrieved June 18, 2026, from https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/common-agricultural-policy_en

European Commission. (n.d.-b). The common agricultural policy at a glance. Retrieved June 18, 2026, from https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/common-agricultural-policy/cap-overview/cap-glance_en

European Commission. (n.d.-c). Farm to Fork strategy. Retrieved June 18, 2026, from https://food.ec.europa.eu/horizontal-topics/farm-fork-strategy_en

European Commission. (2025). The 28 CAP strategic plans underway. Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development. https://eu-cap-network.ec.europa.eu/sites/default/files/2025-07/csp-result.pdf

European Union. (2012). Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 November 2012 on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs. Official Journal of the European Union, L 343, 1–29. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32012R1151

Muñoz, C. (2025). Adoption of agricultural innovations within the 'Farm to Fork' strategy: A realistic review of barriers, paradoxes, and avenues for change. Sustainability, 17(21), Article 9493. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17219493

Pe'er, G., Zinngrebe, Y., Moreira, F., Sirami, C., Schindler, S., Müller, R., Bontzorlos, V., Clough, D., Bezák, P., Bonn, A., Hansjürgens, B., Lomba, A., Möckel, S., Passoni, G., Schleyer, C., Schmidt, J., & Lakner, S. (2019). A greener path for the EU Common.

Yaxin Bao  is a second-year Accounting and Finance student at the University of Bristol, driven by the ambition to bridge the gap between financial systems and global sustainability. As part of his work with IRIS Sustainable Development, he is currently supporting research on the practical implications of EU sustainability frameworks, specifically the European Green Deal and the Farm to Fork Strategy. Polly is exploring how these policies may create both challenges and opportunities for small-scale food entrepreneurs. He aims to develop a career at the intersection of finance and international business, contributing to a more resilient and sustainable global economy.