Our food system is central to urbanism. It impacts human health, social and economic development and contributes to an adequate use of urban space. Consequently, a detachment of urban planning from the food system can have harmful consequences. Aware of the inherent costs of this disengagement, SPLACH Project – Spatial Planning for Change” elaborates on data collected from the Lisbon Metropolitan Area (LMA) to generate a body of transformative planning policies, implementation mechanisms, and decision support systems, aimed at guiding the Portuguese planning practice towards a transition to a low carbon, sustainable and inclusive urban system. Based on semi-structured interviews with smallholder farmers in the LMA and on ethnographic data gathered during the summer of 2020, this paper maps several small-scale businesses scattered in this territory. Although the concern for these farmers dealings is practically absent from any planning policies and mechanisms, they already operate in the metropolitan area, crossing administrative divisions and responding to societal and economic demands. We conclude that the food system is already being changed from within, despite the lack of recognition and proper planning from decision makers. This presentation demonstrates how the absence of effective public policies, namely related to urban planning, affects emerging problems related to food security and hinders food access. Based on ethnographic examples from food basket producers and distributors, we present how urban planning could contribute to minimize these food-related problems, while acknowledging how the food system operates as a vital part to reach a sustainable and inclusive urban life.

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food systems,etnography