ABSTRACT
The study of the supply of food from rural areas to the city involves an understanding of broader social and economic as well as geographical processes at work in rural-urban interactions. The city, as an area of considerable food deficit, serves to focus the trade of food within the country. In this way the city serves as a focus for food distribution in the same way as it does for the political and economic life of the country. For example, Guyer (1987) discussed food marketing for cities in Africa in terms of food chains, thinking about food supply by focusing on the links from producer to consumer. She argued that these food chains are important not only for their functional role:
In the case of urban food supply they are also a key conduit through which the relations between urban and rural areas are articulated. The study of urban food supply in less developed countries (LDCs) is therefore of crucial political and economic significance.
