Local markets can deliver food security. But they need investment not subsidies

As climate change, trade disputes and the War in Ukraine disrupt business-as-usual, food security has become a concern for many. And a critical policy priority. This is because many parts of Europe have become dependent on food imports. Cities like Krakow, Vilnius, Malmo and Riga are changing policies to protect agricultural land and revitalise farmers’ markets, recognising that food production capabilities are part of ‘critical infrastructure’ that has been neglected in recent years. Growing and processing food locally is becoming a must-have. No longer a nice-to-have.

In this context, growing local markets for locally-produced food is coming to seen by many as a promising opportunity for making food systems more resilient. In European Union policies and priorities this is the idea of Short Food Supply Chains (SFSC)—direct links between producers and consumers that strengthen local economies, reduce environmental impact, and build resilience in times of crisis. Many EU member states are adopting SFSC-friendly policies and directing grant-aid to SFSC innovations.

Yet despite policy and financial support, SFSC ventures remain marginal in the food marketplace. The question is: how can they be scaled and mainstreamed for greater impact?

One possible answer is to treat SFSC initiatives as business ventures that need investment not subsidies.

Testing this proposition is the focus the project: SFSC4SEC – Strengthening Food Security in the Baltic Region and Ukraine: Pathways for Growing Local Markets for Locally-Produced Food as Business Ventures. This is a transnational cooperation project funded by the Swedish Institute under its Baltic Sea Neighbourhood Programme. Backed by a grant of 2,000,000 SEK, SFSC4SEC the project brings SFSC expertise from Sweden, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, and Ukraine to identify replicable solutions for growing local food systems.

A key opportunity and motivation of project implementation (2025-7) is to learn from Ukraine where food systems have become decentralised through necessity and understand better the policy implications.

The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) is the project lead and responsible for conceptual framework development. IsoTech (Poland) brings expertise related to IT-enabled solutions and policy alignment. The Latvian Rural Forum (Latvia) has practical experience with stakeholder engagement and communication. The Vytautas Magnus University (Lithuania) has advocated research and policy priorities for SFSC growth, whereas the Civil Society Institute (Ukraine) brings practical know-how on community-based food security initiatives during wartime.

The expected outcome? A transnational knowledge-sharing ecosystem of SFSC practitioners and policymakers, practical tools for assessing and growing local food markets, and policy recommendations that embed SFSCs as business ventures into national strategies in line with EU priorities and expectations of impact investors. No such network exists today.

The ambition is to tap into Ukraine’s experience of decentralising local food systems with local and regional governments taking a lead as a way of building more resilient, sustainable, and competitive local food markets in the Baltic region.

Why does this matter? Because strengthening local food markets is not just about food—it’s about security, sustainability, and solidarity. By treating SFSC initiatives as business ventures and investing in those SFSCs to grow them in scale and impact appears to be the key to their sustainability. Providing frameworks and tools for assessing SFSC initiatives as investible business ventures is where the SFSC4FOODSEC is seeking to make a difference.