Defining a Cultural Context to Underutilized Crops in the Minnesota Food System A Systems Mapping Approach

Abstract

Culture can be used as a tool to provide significant insights in numerous contexts. Yet, culture has yet to be defined within a food system. As communities are subject to food system(s) increasingly operating on international scales, not only is the biodiversity of various organisms being affected but cultural diversity as well.1 In order to fully develop and identify barriers and challenges in food systems, culture as operationalized within a system needs to be understood and represented as a part of the entire framework.2 This article makes an attempt to define the Food System Cultural Analysis Tool (FSCAT) developed from independent research and analysis conducted remotely within the context of the barley food system. The resulting FSCAT was developed with the intent of use in rural food systems to identify the cultural barriers within.