Will COVID-19 affect food supply in distribution centers of Brazilian regions affected by the pandemic?

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on food availability and affordability: an interrupted time series analysis in Ghana

BACKGROUND

In Africa, approx. 675 million people were at risk of food insecurity. COVID-19 pandemic is likely to have exacerbated this situation, by damaging populations' access to and affordability of foods. This study is aimed at estimating the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on availability and prices of essential food commodities at 20 large markets in Ghana.

METHODS

Data on food availability and food retail prices collected through weekly market-level data during the period from July 2017 to September 2020 were used in this study. We performed interrupted time-series analyses and estimated the percentage increases between the observed and predicted food prices by food group and by region to assess the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on food prices.

RESULTS

As a result, the impact of COVID-19 on food availability was limited. However, the results of interrupted time-series analyses indicate a significant increase in overall mean food prices in Greater Accra, Eastern and Upper East regions. It was also found that mean price of starchy roots, tubers and plantains significantly increased across regions.

DISCUSSION

The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on food availability and prices was significant but varied by food type and regions in Ghana. Continuous monitoring and responses are critical to maintain food availability and affordability.

Online community group food purchasing during the COVID-19 pandemic: Food security, problems, and sustainability

The outbreak of the COVID-10 variant Omicron epidemic in Shanghai in 2022 had a huge impact on residents' food security. This study examines the roles, challenges, and sustainability of online community group food purchasing by analyzing survey data collected from 1168 households in Shanghai between March and May 2022, in the aftermath of COVID-19. This study demonstrates that online community group food purchasing played a crucial role in ensuring residents' food access and food security during the pandemic. However, this study also reveals that residents expressed concerns about the risk of epidemic transmission, food safety, increased prices, and difficulty in safeguarding rights. Only 21.5 % of residents are willing to continue using online community group purchasing. Based on the above conclusions, this study offers some suggestions.

Three years into the pandemic: Insights of the COVID-19 impacts on food security and nutrition in low and middle-income countries

The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a global crisis with unanticipated and diverse consequences. Moreover, the pandemic has considerably impacted food dynamics in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where food systems have already been challenged. These countries also have the highest share of the world's malnourished and food insecure. Therefore, this paper aims to analyze the pandemic's impact on food security dimensions (availability, accessibility, utilization, and stability), with a special emphasis on LMICs. According to the results, the pandemic immediately impacted food security by limiting food production and availability. It also had an indirect impact when lockdowns and other confinement measures (e.g., social distancing, movement restrictions) made it more difficult for individuals to access food and maintain a healthy, balanced diet (cf. food utilization). Indeed, with rising unemployment and poverty, access to food has been the most critically undermined aspect of food security. At the utilization level, COVID-19 adversely influences the nutritional state of both individuals and countries, leading to an increase in all forms of malnutrition. Finally, the impact of COVID-19 on the stability dimension is dependent on the length of the pandemic as well as the effectiveness with which recovery plans are followed to ensure universal vaccine availability, among other factors. As a result, including agricultural and food systems in recovery strategies is crucial to mitigating the pandemic's long-term effects on food security.

Modelling supply chain sustainability challenges in the food processing sector amid the COVID-19 outbreak

The recent COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted most businesses and their supply chains. Due to the negative impacts of COVID-19, businesses have been facing numerous challenges. Among them, sustainability challenges are critical for any supply chain. In the literature, several studies have discussed the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on supply chains; however, there is a significant research gap in analysing supply chain sustainability challenges amid the COVID-19 outbreak in a particular context. To fill this research gap, this study aims to develop a systematic approach to identifying and analysing COVID-19 outbreak-related supply chain sustainability challenges in the context of the Australian food processing sector. To achieve the aims, this paper develops a mixed-method approach consisting of both qualitative and quantitative techniques, namely online survey and the Best-Worst method. From the online survey among experts from the Australian food processing sector, 22 sustainability challenges were finalised and categorised into four categories, namely, economic, environmental, social and ethical, and operational challenges. The empirical findings from the exploratory investigation reveal that increased food processing cost, lack of transparency and traceability, increase in price of raw materials, lack of capital and physical resources, and spread of fake information are the top five sustainability challenges to the Australian food processing sector due to the impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak. The findings of this study will help decision-makers, practitioners, and policymakers by developing the policies, guidelines, and strategies to overcome the most impactful sustainability challenges to ensure sustainable recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Transition to a sustainable food supply chain during disruptions: A study on the Brazilian food companies in the Covid-19 era

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought negative impacts to global supply chains, in particular to the agricultural sector. Although these companies have been developing programs to mitigate the impacts caused by COVID-19, researchers have been worried about a possible weakening of the adoption of sustainable initiatives due to a focus on dealing with the consequences of the pandemic. Grounded on the Resource Orchestration Theory, the goal of this study was to assess the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak on sustainable (environmental, social, and economic) performance in the context of agri-food supply chains. To do so, a questionnaire survey was used to collect data from 349 different medium and large agri-food companies in Brazil. Data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling-Partial Least Squares technique. This study has found out that, under the impacts arising from COVID-19 pandemic (1) supply management and transportation and logistics management had a positive impact on food supply chains' sustainable performance; (2) the effects of relationship management and supply chain wide impact management were found to be negative on sustainable performance; and (3) the effects of demand and production management on sustainable performance were not considered significant. We propose a framework that clearly represents the relationship between the disrupted supply chain areas and sustainable performance through the development of orchestration capabilities. By knowing which kinds of impacts produce the most significant effects on sustainable performance, policy makers and managers will be able to make decisions and take actions to avoid negative effects and to improve firms' sustainable performance.

Investigation of pre and post environmental impact of the lockdown (COVID-19) on the water quality of the Capibaribe and Tejipió rivers, Recife metropolitan region, Brazil

The coronavirus pandemic has seriously affected human health, although some improvements on environmental indexes have temporarily occurred, due to changes on socio-cultural and economic standards. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impacts of the coronavirus and the influence of the lockdown associated with rainfall on the water quality of the Capibaribe and Tejipió rivers, Recife, Northeast Brazil, using cloud remote sensing on the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform. The study was carried out based on eight representative images from Sentinel-2. Among the selected images, two refer to the year 2019 (before the pandemic), three refer to 2020 (during a pandemic), two from the lockdown period (2020), and one for the year 2021. The land use and land cover (LULC) and slope of the study region were determined and classified. Water turbidity data were subjected to descriptive and multivariate statistics. When analyzing the data on LULC for the riparian margin of the Capibaribe and Tejipió rivers, a low permanent preservation area was found, with a predominance of almost 100% of the urban area to which the deposition of soil particles in rivers are minimal. The results indicated that turbidity values in the water bodies varied from 6 mg. L-1 up to 40 mg. L-1. Overall, the reduction in human-based activities generated by the lockdown enabled improvements in water quality of these urban rivers.

Retail prices of nutritious food rose more in countries with higher COVID-19 case counts

The COVID-19 pandemic has curtailed lives and livelihoods, leading to price spikes for some foods and declines for others. We compare monthly retail food prices in up to 181 countries from January 2019 to June 2021, test for differences over time and find that average prices rose significantly, especially for more nutritious food groups in countries with higher COVID-19 case counts. Analysis of retail prices by food group complements data on farm commodity prices and overall consumer price indexes, helping to guide policy for resilience and response to shocks.

Assessing the Aftermath of COVID-19 Outbreak in the Agro-Food System: An Exploratory Study of Experts' Perspectives

The present study explored COVID-19 outbreak impacts on the food system in terms of agro-food production, distribution networks efficiency, and emerging food consumption patterns according to food experts' perspectives. Individual level data were selected from a sample of 59 executive managers of different domains representing agro-food businesses, agro-food cooperatives, and agro-food consulting firms and public institutions. The empirical analysis addressed the effects of the COVID-19 crisis to all the stages in the food chain and attempted to indicate the factors that could influence the trajectory from "farm to fork" under uncertain circumstances. Factor analysis elicited the underlying dimensions of experts' viewpoints toward the operation of the food system during COVID-19 pandemic. Data were also elaborated through hierarchical and k-means cluster analysis and the cluster structure was further validated by discriminant analysis. A two-cluster solution emerged, revealing differences in experts' perceptions toward the aftermath of the pandemic on agriculture (socioeconomic impacts on rural areas, impacts on agricultural production), food processing businesses (decline in the economic viability of food businesses, sharp economic downturn in the food industry, economic recession, incentives for innovation), food distribution networks (distribution channels fallout, food supply disruption), and consumers' food habits and preferences (increasing interest in health protection, adoption of unhealthy eating habits, demand for innovative and sustainable foods). These segments were identified as "skeptical food experts about COVID-19 impacts" (33.9%) and "alarmed food experts about COVID-19 impacts" (66.1%). Our findings highlighted the main disruptions that the food sector should overcome to meet consumer demand for safe and healthy food products and also ensure food availability and food system resiliency.

Investigating the effects of the outbreak of COVID-19 on perishable food supply chains: an empirical study using PLS-SEM

Purpose

At the end of 2019, the first case of the Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19) was reported in Wuhan city of China. The disease was declared a pandemic without imagining the magnitude of damage currently caused in all branches of the economy. One of the most affected sectors was food and mostly perishable food (PF), which are more susceptible to environmental conditions. Thus, the research examines the effect of the COVID-19 outbreak on Ecuador's perishable food supply chains (PFSCs) during the pandemic. It contributes to new results on the special issue (SI) PFSC response to event risk and uncertainty, such as those that generated the pandemic.

Design/methodology/approach

The data used are from primary information sources, which were collected through a questionnaire. The questionnaire was applied to 298 companies belonging to the sector, and later the information was processed through partial least squares structural equation model. The convergent validity, discriminate and robustness tests provide arguments for the suitability of the model. Therefore, the findings are reliable and valid for the adequate measures to improve the PFSC due to a COVID-19 outbreak.

Findings

The results show that the perception of personal risk (PPR) produced by COVID-19 has caused the companies of the PFSC to adopt preventive policies (PO) to avoid contagion and guarantee the operation of the companies. In addition, the PPR has been responsible for the alterations in the demand and price (DP) of PF. Next, PO and DP have a significant effect on PFSC, which shows the evidence favouring the malfunction of PFSC operations due to anti-contagion PO, the mismatch of DP. On the contrary, circular economy practices contribute to the excellent performance of the PFSC. Finally, the research suggests some policy implications to consider in improving the PFSC.

Originality/value

This study is the first to be carried out in Ecuador's country on the PFSC; its contribution is unprecedented and makes it a road-map to be considered to guarantee the correct functioning of the PFSCs, and it will provide policymakers with valid elements to design efficient PFSCs that better respond to unforeseen events and uncertainties. Future research will focus on analysing the management of PF consumption in Ecuador during the pandemic.

Covid-19's impact on China's economy: a prediction model based on railway transportation statistics

The outbreak of Covid-19 in China during the Spring Festival of 2020 has changed life as we knew it. To explore its impact on China's economy, we analyse the daily railway passenger volume data during the Spring Festival travel rush and establish two RegARMA models to predict GDP in the first quarter. The models forecast China might lose 4.8 trillion yuan in the first quarter of 2020 due to Covid-19, an expected decrease of 20.69 percent (year-on-year drop 15.60 percent). However, comparing our forecast GDP without Covid-19 (23.2 trillion yuan) with the real GDP (20.65 trillion yuan), there is a smaller drop of 2.55 trillion yuan, a gap of 12.35 percent. The reason for this overestimation is that some positive factors, including macro-control policies, are neglected in these models. With the global spread of Covid-19, China should adopt a policy of focusing on balancing both domestic and external affairs against the instability of the world economy.

Development of sustainable and resilient healthcare and non-cold pharmaceutical distribution supply chain for COVID-19 pandemic: a case study

Purpose

This study evaluated the influence of the coronavirus pandemic on the healthcare and non-cold pharmaceutical care distribution supply chain.

Design/methodology/approach

The model involves four objective functions to minimize the total costs, environmental impacts, lead time and the probability of a healthcare provider being infected by a sick person was developed. An improved version of the augmented e-constraint method was applied to solve the proposed model for a case study of a distribution company to show the effectiveness of the proposed model. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to identify the sensitive parameters. Finally, two robust models were developed to overcome the innate uncertainty of sensitive parameters.

Findings

The result demonstrated a significant reduction in total costs, environmental impacts, lead time and probability of a healthcare worker being infected from a sick person by 40%, 30%, 75% and 54%, respectively, under the coronavirus pandemic compared to the normal condition. It should be noted that decreasing lead time and disease infection rate could reduce mortality and promote the model's effectiveness.

Practical implications

Implementing this model could assist the healthcare and pharmaceutical distributors to make more informed decisions to minimize the cost, lead time, environmental impacts and enhance their supply chain resiliency.

Originality/value

This study introduced an objective function to consider the coronavirus infection rates among the healthcare workers impacted by the pharmaceutical/healthcare products supply chain. This study considered both economic and environmental consequences caused by the coronavirus pandemic condition, which occurred on a significantly larger scale than past pandemic and epidemic crises.

Policies for Rapid Mitigation of the Crisis’ Effects on Agricultural Supply Chains: A Multi-Criteria Decision Support System with Monte Carlo Simulation

This paper proposes an integrated approach towards rapid decision-making in the agricultural sector aimed at improvement of its resilience. Methodologically, we seek to devise a framework that is able to take the uncertainty regarding policy preferences into account. Empirically, we focus on the effects of COVID-19 on agriculture. First, we propose a multi-criteria decision-making framework following the Pugh matrix approach for group decision-making. The Monte Carlo simulation is used to check the effects of the perturbations in the criteria weights. Then, we identify the factors behind agricultural resilience and organize them into the three groups (food security, agricultural viability, decent jobs). The expert survey is carried out to elicit the ratings in regard to the expected effects of the policy measures with respect to dimensions of agricultural resilience. The case of Lithuania is considered in the empirical analysis. The existing and newly proposed agricultural policy measures are taken into account. The measures related to alleviation of the financial burden (e.g., credit payment deferral) appear to be the most effective in accordance with the expert ratings.

Key supply chain strategies for the post-COVID-19 era: implications for resilience and sustainability

Purpose

The impacts of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak continue to devastate supply chain operations. To attain a competitive advantage in the post-COVID-19 era, decision-makers should explore key supply chain strategies to move forward and ready their policies to be implemented when the crisis sufficiently subsides. This is a significant and practical decision-making issue for any supply chain; hence, the purpose of this study is to explore and analyse key supply chain strategies to ensure robustness and resilience in the post-COVID-19 era.

Design/methodology/approach

This study conducted an expert survey targeting practitioners and academics to explore key supply chain strategies as means of moving forward in the post-COVID-19 era. Further, the key strategies were quantitatively analysed by applying the best-worst method (BWM) to determine their priority importance in the context of the manufacturing sector.

Findings

The results revealed that supply chain resilience and sustainability practices could play a dominant role in this period. The findings of the study can assist supply chain decision-makers in their formulations of key strategies.

Originality/value

This is the first study to investigate key supply chain strategies for the post-COVID-19 era. This study will help practitioners paying attention to resilience and sustainability practices for managing the impacts of future large-scale disruptions.

Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on food habits and perceptions: A study with Brazilians

Background

Following the COVID-19 pandemic (caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus) at the beginning of 2020, containment measures have been taken by different countries around the globe. Citizens were forced to stay in quarantine, affecting their food consumption habits and food sector. These impacts have not yet been properly understood. Thus, it is important to describe the consequences of COVID-19 on food consumption habits globally, especially in the context of developing countries, such as Brazil.

Scope and approach

In this study, the Brazilian's food consumption habits and perceptions during the COVID-19 pandemic were assessed, highlighting the food consumption changes and selection of food products. Consumer perceptions about issues related to food safety and food marketing were also assessed. An online survey was performed and data were analyzed by descriptive analysis; independence and per cell chi-square test; and factor analysis.

Key findings and conclusions

Brazilians perceptions indicated that the COVID-19 pandemic context (assessed in May 2020) changed their food consumption and purchase. Respondents stated that they are eating and buying a greater amount of food, indicating a perception of a less healthy diet, mainly by women. On other hand, they are prioritizing homemade preparations and fresh food. Moreover, they reduced their shopping trips to markets and are starting to use delivery services and shopping platforms. Basic products of animal, vegetable, and bakery origin are being preferred during this period, in addition to economical packaging and products. Brazilians also indicated that they are more concerned with food safety and hygienic practices. However, at a time when global health is threatened, government agencies must create measures that ensure the food supply and consumer's awareness, in order to guarantee the country's food security during the current crisis.

Causal Impacts of Epidemics and Pandemics on Food Supply Chains: A Systematic Review

The epidemics and pandemics can severely affect food supply chains, including producers, retailers, wholesalers, and customers. To minimize their impacts, it is fundamental to implement effective policies that ensure continuity in the provision, affordability, and distribution of basic food items. This research identifies the main impacts of pandemics and epidemics on food supply chains and policies that can minimize these impacts. Based on a systematic literature review (SLR), 173 documents are analysed to propose a taxonomy of impacts on four supply chain links: demand-side, supply-side, logistics and infrastructure, and management and operation. The taxonomy presents the main impacts and respective mitigation policies. In addition, the literature review leads to the development of a comprehensive causal loop diagram (CLD) with the identification of main variables and their relationship with food supply chains. Finally, a specific research agenda is proposed by identifying the main research gaps. These findings provide a structured method for evaluating policies that ensure the functioning of food supply chains, particularly in disruptions such as epidemics and pandemics.

Technological Innovation and Circular Economy Practices: Business Strategies to Mitigate the Effects of COVID-19

The Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been a tough test on companies in the global food sector supply chain, exacerbating the realities and deficiencies it presents in developing economies. This situation has been reflected in the firm’s performance (F.P.) due to the lack of business conditions to respond to the current pandemic. However, in some companies, the adverse effects of COVID-19 have been counteracted due to endowment and technological capabilities. Thus, this study examined the role of technological innovation (T.I.) and business data analytics (B.D.A.) in the F.P. of foods in Ecuador during COVID-19. A questionnaire collected the information from the food firms. Then, Covariance-Based Structural Equation Modeling processed the collected information. We found that (B.D.A.) mechanisms and different levels of T.I. within the developing market significantly shape the F.P. The results showed that the B.D.A. enables circular economy (C.E.) practices and the improvement of product delivery services, which constitutes an improvement of the F.P. The COVID-19 outbreak did not significantly affect T.I., unlike what happened with B.D.A. This study concluded that firms with the most extraordinary technological production processes have been the least affected during COVID-19. This study suggested that policy measures should boost food firms’ technological endowment to improve their resilience in uncertainty and risk scenarios.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on fish consumption and household food security in Dhaka city, Bangladesh

The effects of COVID-19 are continuing to increase around the world as the pandemic claims thousands of lives. Bangladesh is no exception and has been greatly affected by SARS-CoV-2. Apart from the number of people who are or have been directly getting infected with this disease, millions of people are directly or indirectly facing many challenges to their livelihoods and the security of their food and nutritional supply, along with other societal issues created by the pandemic. In this study, a hybrid approach of online and telephone questionnaire surveys was used to investigate the food security of Dhaka city's inhabitants at household level. Approximately 80% of the respondents reported reduced income, and a quarter of respondents lost their jobs between March and June 2020. The frequency of fish consumption, an essential component of Bangladeshi diets, significantly reduced during the pandemic. This was especially apparent in affluent segments of the community. Out of the respondents, 75% reported an increase in the price of fish in Dhaka city. A range of coping strategies were observed: including decreasing the frequency of grocery shopping, shifting to online shopping, reducing consumption of high price commodities, reducing junk food consumption, cleaning fish and meat with hot water and vinegar, and increasing the consumption of protein and vitamin C rich food items. Prior to COVID-19, 80% of the households surveyed bought fish from wet markets. This number dropped to 45% during the pandemic. Many households substituted fish and meat with poultry, eggs and dried fish. About half of the households stockpiled rice, lentils and potatoes during the peak of the pandemic. However, if the pandemic lasts for a prolonged period, those living on low incomes in urban areas will experience some level of food insecurity from a reduced income or loss of work. Because of this, a large-scale sustainability policy should be undertaken to secure the food and nutritional security of low-income and middle-class household.

Agri-food systems in India: Concerns and policy recommendations for building resilience in post COVID-19 pandemic times

The COVID-19 pandemic has severely impacted the development trajectories of several world economies with India being no exception. The country presently is the second worst affected in terms of total infections despite inducing a nationwide lockdown in the initial stages. In addition to curtailing infection spread, ensuring food security during and post pandemic is a major concern for the country owing to the high percentage of stunting and undernourishment already present and a relatively high proportion of vulnerable workforce with no regular source of income amidst the lockdown. The present article therefore ascertains the impact of the pandemic on the food systems which can potentially affect food security in the country as well as the government introduced reforms and policy measures to tackle them. Following the analysis, we suggest measures like digitally enhancing connectivity of neighbourhood retail or ‘Kirana’ stores in urban and rural areas, distribution of therapeutic foods and immune supplements among the impoverished societal sections through existing government schemes and promotion of ‘planetary healthy diets’ for overcoming food-insecurity while increasing nutrition security and ensuring long term food sector sustainability.

Food prices and marketing margins during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from vegetable value chains in Ethiopia

It is widely feared that the shock of the COVID-19 pandemic will lead to a significant worsening of the food security situation in low and middle-income countries. One reason for this is the disruption of food marketing systems and subsequent changes in farm and consumer prices. Based on primary data in Ethiopia collected just before the start and a few months into the pandemic, we assess changes in farm and consumer prices of four major vegetables and the contribution of different segments of the rural-urban value chain in urban retail price formation. We find large, but heterogeneous, price changes for different vegetables with relatively larger changes seen at the farm level, compared to the consumer level, leading to winners and losers among local vegetable farmers due to pandemic-related trade disruptions. We further note that despite substantial hurdles in domestic trade reported by most value chain agents, increases in marketing-and especially transportation-costs have not been the major contributor to overall changes in retail prices. Marketing margins even declined for half of the vegetables studied. The relatively small changes in marketing margins overall indicate the resilience of these domestic value chains during the pandemic in Ethiopia.

COVID-19 pandemic related supply chain studies: A systematic review

The global spread of the novel coronavirus, also known as the COVID-19 pandemic, has had a devastating impact on supply chains. Since the pandemic started, scholars have been researching and publishing their studies on the various supply-chain-related issues raised by COVID-19. However, while the number of articles on this subject has been steadily increasing, due to the absence of any systematic literature reviews, it remains unclear what aspects of this disruption have already been studied and what aspects still need to be investigated. The present study systematically reviews existing research on the COVID-19 pandemic in supply chain disciplines. Through a rigorous and systematic search, we identify 74 relevant articles published on or before 28 September 2020. The synthesis of the findings reveals that four broad themes recur in the published work: namely, impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, resilience strategies for managing impacts and recovery, the role of technology in implementing resilience strategies, and supply chain sustainability in the light of the pandemic. Alongside the synthesis of the findings, this study describes the methodologies, context, and theories used in each piece of research. Our analysis reveals that there is a lack of empirically designed and theoretically grounded studies in this area; hence, the generalizability of the findings, thus far, is limited. Moreover, the analysis reveals that most studies have focused on supply chains for high-demand essential goods and healthcare products, while low-demand items and SMEs have been largely ignored. We also review the literature on prior epidemic outbreaks and other disruptions in supply chain disciplines. By considering the findings of these articles alongside research on the COVID-19 pandemic, this study offers research questions and directions for further investigation. These directions can guide scholars in designing and conducting impactful research in the field.

COVID-19 and food prices in sub-Saharan Africa

This study investigated the impact of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak on prices of maize, sorghum, imported rice and local rice in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). We estimated dynamic panel data models with controls for macroeconomic setting using general method of moments estimation. The study found that the COVID-19 outbreak led to increases in food prices of the sampled countries. Restrictions on movements or lockdowns in the wake of COVID-19 was associated with an increase in the price of maize only. We also found that exchange rate, inflation and crude oil prices exerted a detrimental effect on food prices. We recommend that governments of SSA countries invest in infrastructure that improves efficiencies in the food supply chain during pandemics. Providing adequate support to industries in the value chain will also improve food availability and food price stability post-COVID-19.

Surveying the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) on the poultry supply chain: A mixed methods study

The coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has affected all supply chains through severe disruption of logistics activities, production, and markets. This study aimed to survey the impact of the coronavirus on the poultry supply chain using an exploratory sequential mixed design. We first addressed those stages of the poultry supply chain disrupted in an ongoing pandemic, and then elaborated particular disturbances associated with each stage. This study was based on data collected from Iranian poultry industry owners and experts who had sufficient experience in agricultural supply chains as well. As the qualitative phase, the content analysis was conducted to identify the impacts of the coronavirus on the poultry supply chain. The results and conclusions that emerged from the qualitative phase were refined and weighted by the Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM) and the Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) respectively, in the quantitative phase. The results suggested that the pandemic has further affected the input supply as a stage in the poultry supply chain. This is probably because of the fact that the poultry industry is heavily dependent on inputs' flow. In addition, supply chain governance was seriously impaired due to the persistence of the pandemic. The coronavirus pandemic has significantly affected the stages that are most reliant on transportation. Finally, we found that a part of the disruptions that occur in the downstream of the supply chain is due to the epidemic's direct adverse effects, and another part is due to indirect consequences received from the upstream. Our findings and implications can be useful in decision-making procedures during ongoing epidemics.

COVID-19 Pandemic and Agroecosystem Resilience: Early Insights for Building Better Futures

The way the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted human lives and livelihoods constituted a stress test for agroecosystems in developing countries, as part of rural–urban systems and the global economy. We applied two conceptual schemes to dissect the evidence in peer-reviewed literature so far, as a basis for better understanding and enabling ‘building back better’. Reported positive impacts of the lockdown ‘anthropause’ on environmental conditions were likely only short-term, while progress towards sustainable development goals was more consistently set back especially for social aspects such as livelihood, employment, and income. The loss of interconnectedness, driving loss of assets, followed a ‘collapse’ cascade that included urban-to-rural migration due to loss of urban jobs, and illegal exploitation of forests and wildlife. Agricultural activities geared to international trade were generally disrupted, while more local markets flourished. Improved understanding of these pathways is needed for synergy between the emerging adaptive, mitigative, transformative, and reimaginative responses. Dominant efficiency-seeking strategies that increase fragility will have to be re-evaluated to be better prepared for further pandemics, that current Human–Nature interactions are likely to trigger.

COVID-19's implications on agri-food systems and human health in Bangladesh

The COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh has put agri-food systems and resultant human health under serious pressure and this has thus become a priority concern for the country and its development partners. To understand, describe and analyse the impacts of COVID-19 on agri-food systems, human health issues and related SDGs, this study used systematic rapid literature review, analysis of blogs and news and engagement with key informants. The analysis reveals impacts that can be addressed through a set of recommendations for a coordinated effort to minimize the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on agri-food systems and related health issues in Bangladesh.

Resilience effects in food consumption behaviour at the time of Covid-19: perspectives from Italy

The Covid-19 pandemic lead Italy to undertake a severe lockdown for almost two months. All of a sudden, the lives of Italians were forced to shift in accordance with the regulations issued by government. This change in the lives of Italians can be mirrored by an adjustment in food consumer behaviour that, consequently, brought about a transition in the whole supply chain. This paper gives an overview of the recent changes in consumption patterns that occurred due to the Italian lockdown, and how evolutions in behaviour are intertwined with the evolution of the main food supply chains. Many of the events here depicted are likely to last far beyond the crisis and affect the subsequent evolution of food consumption in Italy. The Italian retail supply chain successfully adapted to the big shift in consumption. Despite purchases for essential items having increased, no stockout harmed the food security of Italians. Out-of-home consumption moved inside houses giving space to home meal preparation and comfort food. Home delivery has been the most important element in this context, as it boomed during this period, helping laggard consumers fill the digital divide, as it was mostly mediated by e-commerce platforms and instant messaging. It was also the leverage that allowed small retailers and small producers regain their space. This crisis calls for a more sustainable food system that will be increasingly oriented to moving goods rather than people, which will also have relevance in the coming years.

Pandemics and the future of human-landscape interactions

Pandemics have accelerated in frequency in recent decades, with COVID-19 the latest to join the list. Emerging in late 2019 in Wuhan, China, the virus has spread quickly through the world, affecting billions of people through quarantine, and at the same time claiming more than 800,000 lives worldwide. While early reflections from the academic community have tended to target the microbiology, medicine, and animal science communities, this article articulates a viewpoint from a perspective of human interactions with Earth systems. We highlight the link between rising pandemics and accelerating global human impacts on Earth, thereby suggesting that pandemics may be an emerging element of the “Anthropocene.” Examples from Denver, Colorado, USA, show how policy responses to the COVID-19 pandemic changed human-environment interactions and created anomalous landscapes at the local scale, in relation to the quality of air and patterns of acquiring and consuming food. In recognizing the significance of novel infectious diseases as part of understanding human-landscape interactions in the Anthropocene, as well as the multi-scale interconnectedness between environment and health, this viewpoint converges toward an urgent need for new paradigms for research and teaching. The program required extends well beyond the already broad interdisciplinary scholarship essential for addressing human-landscape interactions, by integrating the work of health scientists, disease specialists, immunologists, virologists, veterinarians, behavioral scientists, and health policy experts.