Cultivating change: Exploring policies, challenges, and solutions to support city region food systems development in six European countries

City Region Food System (CRFS) initiatives exist in various forms, featuring a diversified set of social, economic and environmental performances and impacts. The CRFS approach includes all actors, processes, and relationships involved in the food chain (from production and processing to the distribution and consumption of food) in a given geographical area. Therefore, it encompasses the most crucial elements for facilitating interactions between rural, peri-urban and urban areas. Existing policies may have the potential to support or hinder the progress and development of CRFS initiatives. This research addresses international and national policies as well as the related constraints and challenges that affect CRFS development in six European countries. The overall goal of this research relates to the research questions of how this all-encompassing policy system impacts urban food production and how stakeholders, researchers, and practitioners perceive the current policies at the multi-national level. Various strategic plans with positive and negative impacts, as well as current policy gaps, were compiled from both theoretical and practical perspectives. Data collection was conducted through desktop research, stakeholder interviews and a workshop. Thus, expanding upon the analysis of the results, the study discusses the current challenges in the field of CRFS policies by providing examples, proposing potential improvements, and offering recommendations. • According to the interviewed stakeholders, planning laws restrict the possibilities for food production in cities. • Legal frameworks prevent the marketing and sale of food produced by non-commercial actors or informal farmers. • There is a need to expand vocational training in the agricultural sector and to offer practice-oriented courses. • Development of sustainable food strategies has a positive impact on CRFS initiatives.