Understanding post-exceptionalism in agri-food policymaking: Addressing multiple crises

Agricultural policies are often the target of criticism for doing too little to encourage and facilitate the farm and food sector to transforming to sustainable production, processing and consumption and to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the Agenda 2030. Recent years have seen new political demands to respond to multiple crises and risks facing the agri-food sector such as climate change (SDG 13), bio-diversity loss (SDG 15), water pollution (SDG 6) and antimicrobial resistance (SDG 3). Often the policy measures adopted to address these issues fall short of delivering the expected impacts. Agri-food policies have displayed a significant degree of continuity in their underlying paradigm. The exceptionalist legacy still sticks in the form of post-exceptionalism. The concept of post-exceptionalism denotes a partial transformation in which an exceptionalist policy sector has not been completely ‘normalized’ and in which old and new ideas, institutions, interests and policy instruments coexist. The theoretical challenge remains to identify and explain the dynamics of such partial transformation processes. A defining feature of policy measures aimed at addressing unsustainable food production, processing or consumption is cross-sectoral policy and governance arrangements. This involves inter-linkages at national and local levels with other policy domains such as environment and climate change, energy, water, public health, animal welfare, bio-technology, development, trade, security, international politics, and migration. Food systems also face transboundary threats, ranging from climate change, transboundary diseases and increased migration to disrupted supply chains due to Russia’s war against Ukraine. Agri-food technology change promises benefits for addressing such threats but simultaneously fuels new governance challenges and, ultimately, the rise of new and potentially contested modes of governance. There is a need for theoretical and empirical research on the dynamics of post-exceptionalist policymaking. This includes policy change, new cross-sectoral governance arrangements, potential for policy integration etc. 1. Reform agri-food policies: dynamics and policy change Agricultural and food policies have been subject to reform over the last three decades. Changed priorities within civil society, increased mobilization of and access for a wider range of interests with respect to food, and multiple sustainability crises in agricultures have been suggested as the drivers of reform. Under this sub-topic, we welcome papers addressing reform dynamics in past and ongoing reform efforts: How can we explain elements of continuity and change? How do experiences with previous policies feed back into current reform dynamics? 2. Agri-Food Policy Responding to Crisis: Charting New Approaches This panel examines the transformation of agri-food policies in response to global crises such as climate change, geopolitical conflicts, and resource scarcity. It explores how established and novel governance approaches affect the resilience and sustainability of agri-food systems responding to crises, especially when they interact with established farm income support, other policy areas (water, energy, land, climate), and increasing political polarization. Discussions focus on adapting and transforming policy objectives, strategies, and instruments in the current crisis landscape confronting agri-food systems. 3. Addressing Climate Risks in Agriculture: A Post-Exceptionalist Perspective on Policy Change The food sector is simultaneously a producer of greenhouse gas emissions, a source of climate change remediation, and a sector uniquely vulnerable to climate risks. Yet, agricultural policies are often resistant or slow to adopt sustainable practices. This tension is a product of post-exceptionalism, where both old and new ideas, institutions, interests and policy instruments coexist. Papers in this panel conceptualize this partial transformation process to better understand the politics of agricultural transitions. 4. Farm to Fork or Farm to Flop? The adoption of the European Commission’s Farm to Fork Strategy marked a first step towards a comprehensive EU food policy. This panel investigates to what extent the Farm to Fork agenda has proven a game-changer in EU food systems governance. Relevant questions include: i) did the F2F result in a post-exceptionalist breakthrough?, ii) to what extent was the F2F accompanied by horizontal and/or vertical policy integration?, iii) what have been the major sources of controversy and how to overcome those? We welcome contributions from a diverse range of methodological and perspective approaches to enrich the discussion on this pivotal topic. 5. Food Politics and Governance in Low- and Middle-Income Countries Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) face many challenges to their food and nutrition security, particularly in the face of accelerating climate change, rapid urbanization, and complex global agricultural trade environment. This panel invites papers exploring, for example, how different political structures affect LMICs’ food security policies, how effective distinct governance models have been in addressing nutrition challenges, how LMICs have attempted to tackle the effects of climate change on their agricultural production or how international trade agreements have influenced LMICs’ food production. Contributions on other aspects of LMIC’s food politics and policies are also welcome.