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The research group Foodscapes Innovation and Networks has addressed integrated food studies issues in re-search and education since 2010. Based on experiences in the group, this paper aims at discussing the chal-lenges, learning outcomes and potentials for pushing an integrated thinking into research and education. It also addresses the challenges in integration when the methodological approaches and theoretical frameworks chosen are ontologically and epistemologically different. A discussion of the limitations of integration is thus also part of the paper.The conceptual framework of ontonorms (Mol, 2013) is suggested as a common point of departure for a further development of integration. This is suggested relevant due to the fact that it forces different traditions to reflect their own value-related basis and discuss implications of this approach in a broader sense. The common values have been identified to be sustainability, healthy and better food, food systems change and enhanced food experiences. An approach that qualifies the discussions of ontological differences is suggested by Mol (2013) with the term ontonorms emphasizing that all ontological assumptions are embedded in scientific norms (what is good or bad science) and traditions (how do we see the world) rather than being based in the essentialist static and objective worldview of ontology in singular. Thus, what is considered ‘good’ and ‘proper’ obviously differs within different disciplines, but is often based on implicit normativities that can make it difficult to address the differences openly and constructively.

Drawing on a recent doctoral research project that examined the everyday life perspectives during kindergarten mealtime, this paper discusses the methodological issues related to the concepts of child and adult perspectives during mealtime, and to the children’s participation in research. Through the paper, we take part in a critical discussion of the dichotomization of child and adult perspectives (Lee, 2001; Spyrou, 2011; Wyness, 2013). Instead, we suggest to approach perspectives as something that is created through situated interactions between human and nonhuman elements. We argue that perspectives could be studied as constructed from a net of human, material, and discursive elements. In doing so, we also question children’s participation in research as a source for production of knowledge that is more authentic than that produced by adults (Gallacher & Gallagher, 2008; Lomax, 2012). Hence, the kindergarten mealtime will provide the arena for discussing methodological issues that are relevant beyond studies on food and meals.International Research in Early Childhood Education, vol. 7, no. 3, pp. 33–48

Denne undersøgelse dækker erfaringerne med økologisk omlægning i offentlige køkkener og giver et dybere indblik i en række danske kommuner og hospitalskøkkeners viden og erfaringer med økologisk omlægning. I regeringen Økologisk Handlingsplan 2020 er der afsat 56 mio. kr i tilskud til økologisk omstilling af de offentlige køkkener. Men hvordan bruger man eksisterende viden bedst? Det ser vi på i denne rapport, som har til formål at etablere et videngrundlag for det videre arbejde med økologi i offentlige køkkener.

One of the fastest growing food related social movements are citizen driven food networks. The Danish initiatives emerged in Copenhagen from an open culinary, social, environmental and organic oriented network. The theories and strategies of the original initiative is presented in this paper, together with an analysis of how this has evolved and expanded. The challenges this rapid expansion puts on the internal network and organisation, and on the local food supplieres - the organic farmers - are elaborated in this paper. Also – from a rural sociology perspective – the interaction and communication between the citizen-consumer and the farmer are presented and analyzed.

The main focus in this paper is to analyze identified different relations and interpretations of ‘the rural’ in three organic processing companies situated in rural areas in Denmark. In order to look at the differences, Weick’s (1995) sensemaking perspectives are introduced. The main results show that the three companies, which are all organic and situated in rural areas are enacting their rural identity in slightly different ways. In recent years, a dairy company in one of the outskirt areas of Denmark has gradually changed its way of making sense of the local attachment to also include local areas in other parts of the world. This is termed as a sort of ‘glocalism’. A butcher has a much more international and ‘disembedded’ way of making sense of its products, while the company is seen as an important workplace serving as ‘glue’ in a small community. The third company is a mill situated in a rural area on a peninsula. Here the local identity is bound to the farm and the land in a ‘small-box’ identity. Besides the differences, similar aspects in the three companies’ markets are identified. All three companies are mainly dependent on urban markets. They all use branding strategies oriented towards urban consumers. The strategy of the dairy is selling authentic local (glocal) products where we ‘know’ the producers. The butcher sells superior international quality products, and the mill sells a product tracked from ‘field to fork’ with reduced food miles and a clear farm profile. It is concluded that the rural identity can have many expressions and that the companies are not comparable with the organic rural farming identities in all aspects. The future focus of developing values in organic companies might need a more independent focus.

Økologi er i de senere år kommet på dagsordenen i forhold til offentlige indkøb, særligt i forhold til mad i institutioner og skoler. I mad til vuggestuer og børnehaver er økologi allerede udbredt, mens økologisk skolemad særligt findes i hovedstadsområdet. Således ses et voksende ønske om økologi i offentlig bespisning til børn og unge. Imidlertid indebærer indføringen af økologiske fødevarer i institutioner en række udfordringer, som typisk er knyttet til de vanskeligheder, der er forbundet med at omstille et køkken fra konventionelle råvarer til økologiske råvarer. Vanskelighederne kan f.eks. omhandle omstilling til årstidens grøntsager på baggrund af et ønske om at reducere mængden af kød i menuerne, nye menuer, nye rutiner – alt kan ikke fås i de samme pakninger og halvfabrikata som det konventionelle hvorfor der kræves en lidt anden håndtering mm. (Mikkelsen et al). En særlig problemstilling i denne forbindelse er knyttet til leverancerne af de økologiske fødevarer, og herunder kommunernes håndtering af indkøbene. Nedenstående er baseret på interview indsamlet i forsknings-projektet iPOPY.

The title of this doctoral thesis is ‘Sensemaking and nactment perspectives in companies with organic processing’. As the title indicates, the main focus is to understand how companies make sense of, and acts in relation to, the processing of organic food. The author asks why there are very few explicit reflections, both in the public debate and among companies, concerning the processing of organic food, and seeks the answer in empirical work involving five companies engaged in the processing of organic food. Initially, the thesis discusses the background for the choice of subject by arguing that the lack of value reflections, combined with the very sparse regulation in the organic processing sector, is problematic. This is because the expectations from the public connected to the production and the products as, for example, being healthier, better quality, locally produced or a better choice for the environment, are not necessarily fulfilled. These value-related expectations are different from the expectations connected with conventional food products and are related to the history of organic food production. In organic production, primarily among the farmers, there have always been strong relations to different explicit values, which also today make organic food represent an alternative to the conventional. In processing however, very few of these explicit values are represented, if we look at regulations in the area for example. The two major differences between organic and conventional food production are that the list of additives is more limited in organic, whilst there is also a ban on the use of GMO products. This fact leaves the management of values, in a broader sense, to the single company and thereby opens up the possibility for a wide range of interpretations. Today, the amount of organic products on sale in an ordinary supermarket in Denmark illustrates the variety available. It also reveals an increasing selection of more and more processed and conventional ‘lookalikes’ as organic possibilities, for example freeze-dried soup powder, frozen pizzas or ready-to-eat noodles with different flavours. In the context of EU regulation, there is continuous pressure to add to the list of allowed additives from food companies, which has resulted in an increase in the number of permitted additives. For example, today the use of additives for colouring cheese is permitted, which was not previously allowed. This development is problematized in relation to the expectations mentioned above and in relation to the necessary price premium connected to these products due to the more expensive costs such as in the primary production. If organic products end up as conventional ‘look-alikes,’ how can they then represent an alternative and command higher price? This thesis investigates this subject further by gaining knowledge of how the concept of ‘organic’ is comprehended and interpreted within Danish food processing companies. This has lead to the development of the following interconnected research questions: What sensemaking perspectives are connected to organic processing companies? How do they enact the concept of organic in the companies and in the networks around them and what does this mean in relation to practice? Which issues can be placed in the zones of relevance in the companies? 6 The theoretical approach has been related to two main traditions; New Institutionalism and Actor-Network Theory. The overall frame has been to focus on the cultural-cognitive aspects of organisations and relate this to the network activities involving ‘actants’ of both human and non-human origin. Finally, the phenomenologist Alfred Schütz’ (Schütz, 1970) concept ‘Zones of relevance’ is also used to combine the different approaches into a unifying illustration of the potential for the companies to develop their understanding of the distinctive character of organic production. Sensemaking (Weick, 1995; Weick et al, 2005) and enactment are key concepts in the analysis, which are applied in order to determine the identity connected to the specific organic production in each company. In the empirical study, the main methodological approach adopted to examine identity and sensemaking in the companies is the qualitative interview. Interviews were conducted with persons with the main responsibility for organic production in the companies. The focus has been, on the one hand, to try to understand and analyze the sensemaking perspectives in relation to organic processing, whilst on the other, to give an overview of these different sensemaking aspects in relation to the enacting perspectives, which is the potential for developing and acting in networks, in relation the organic identity. The concept ‘zones of relevance’ has been introduced, in order to identify the immediate, and thereby most familiar, issues for the company on which they are acting in the daily practice, and the more peripheral issues. According to Schutz (1970), there are 4 zones of relevance. By crystallising the four zones of relevance for each of the five companies, the purpose is to illustrate the potential for future actions in relation to organic production. The conclusion of the thesis is partly concentrated on the empirical study, and the findings there, and partly on a discussion of the methodological approach and the problems connected to this in a study of this type. In relation to the empirical part, the main finding is that orientations differ depending on whether it is a small or a larger company. I conclude that the three smaller companies enact the concept of organic in greater depth than the larger companies. For one of the larger companies I find clear and explicit limitations towards engagement in developing organic processing values. For the three smaller companies, there is a focus on making products of a distinct character related to quality, processing, or to the story connected to the product. For the two larger companies, the focus is more on making ‘ordinary’ or daily products at an acceptable price. Common to all five companies is a condemnation of the inclusion of more additives in organic production. Another characteristic common to four of the five companies is a quite complex network around the company and for some of them also around the organic production. This indicates a potential for development of the zones of relevance in the companies. Another finding is that in all the five companies there is substantial focus on sales and marketing. This is seemingly an all-pervading element of the companies and their daily acting in relation to organic production. This is in line with what has been one of the main focus points in the history of organic production, since sales were very limited and small in the early period. The finding is also in line with the main focus of the interest group 7 organizing (most) organic companies. Here all employees are educated in sales and marketing. My impression is that this issue therefore receives the highest priority while other aspects of organic production are not in focus in the same way. Regarding the methodological reflections, the main conclusions focus on the discussion of the theoretical and methodological approaches. The multidisciplinary approach has, of course, some advantages and some limitations. The advantages are connected to a more complex and varied look at the material while the limitations are concerned with a more superficial treatment of the approaches used. Also, the issue of whether the use of short time observation and qualitative interviews with a relatively limited number of persons is sufficient in an analysis to, for example, identity aspects of companies, is discussed. Although there are limitations to the methods used in this project, it is still the conviction of the author that the approach has contributed with substantial material in relation to the issues raised in the research statement. The contribution from future research by in opening the discussion about values in processing organic foods is discussed and finally the use of alternative methodological approaches, specifically the more long term observation for example a method called ‘Shadowing’ is discussed.

I rapporten beskrives tre forældrebetalte skolemadsordninger, der blev etableret med støtte fra FødevareErhverv i 2008. Rapporten indeholder også resultater fra en spørgeskemaundersøgelse foretaget blandt elever og forældre i en 4. og 8. klasse på de tre caseskoler. Rapporten er en del af evalueringen ”EVIUS”, der blev gennemført i 2008-2009. Rapporten skal ses i sammenhæng med hovedrapporten fra delprojekt 4 (Brinck, Kristensen & Hansen 2010).

Denne rapport præsenterer resultaterne af de undersøgelser, der er gennemført i delprojekt 4 i EVIUS evalueringen. Fokus i dette delprojekt er forankringen af skolemadsordningerne. Af undersøgelsen fremgår det, at støtteordningen har virket bedst på skoler, hvor skolelederen har inddraget elever, frivillige ældre eller skolemadsleverandøren i de praktiske opgaver med udlevering af maden. Sidst i rapporten er opstillet en række anbefalinger til skoler, som ønsker at etablere madordninger og til det politiske niveau, såfremt det ønskes at stimulere indførelsen af skolemad fremover. Anbefalingerne er centreret om at sikre et bedre ejerskab omkring madordningerne samt sikre at madordningerne i højere grad implementeres som en integreret del af skolens organisation.

Globalization has an overall effect on eating cultures and food production, which calls for new professionals. This growing complexity in the food sector has triggered the introduction of the master in ”Foodscapes”. The master programme addresses the societies need for competencies that combine knowledge on sustainability and health with user demands in relation to food production and consumption. This paper outlines the visions and ideas in the term Foodscapes and touches upon the challenges in combining different professions into a new context. The interdisciplinary approach is seen as a unique new way of combining professions, which traditionally are build on different scientific paradigms and cultures. When focusing on Foodscapes these different paradigms are lifted into a new place with a common goal of giving the students new competencies in the food context. The aim is to combine scientific traditions from which students will develop competencies to act in the complex world of food to the benefit of sustainability. Ability to recognize, decode and reorganize new meanings is seen as key factors in studying Foodscapes. The user perspective is very central in the Foodscapes approach and students with interest in orchestrating future user demands of a sustainable food sector can build competencies to meet these challenges. The context surrounding food, eating and food production influence both meal experiences and the degree of healthy and sustainable actions. By studies in formal and non-formal learning - the contexts in which food interactions take place - analyzing, developing and problem solving is seen to emanate in innovative ways. These abilities combined with co-creation approaches are believed to create more sustainable solutions. Keywords: Foodscapes, sustainability, challenges, competence, interdisciplinary