ABSTRACT
In this chapter, we argue that the linear design of food systems has been central to 21st century food crises and that radical solutions can be found in the guiding principles of circular economy. On this basis, we first introduce these guiding principles and then discuss how they can help to re-imagine and re-design food systems. We present different cases of circular food systems and propose a typology based on characterizations of existing cases. We design the typology around two key features emerging from the analysis, namely, whether the cases operate in a protected or isolated space or if they work collaboratively, and whether they are motivated by advancing technological or social innovations. The result is four classification categories: Islands of Pirates, Spiders in the Web, Towns of Renaissance and Communities of Hope. The typology is then employed to help us depict the main tensions, ambiguities and potentials emerging from the different practices of circular food systems. We conclude by presenting points requiring further discussion and highlight topics for future research.
