from the , and his international colleagues led by Professor Valeska Geldres-Weiss from the Universidad de La Frontera, Chile – have just won a competitive bid with their research proposal: “Climate change and export performance of agri-food products. Challenges and opportunities for La AraucanÃa Regionâ€.
On the back of ongoing research collaboration in the area, Dr Massa was invited to join the team of international scholars, scientists and experts in the Americas and Europe, hailing from the Universidad de La Frontera, Universidad de Santiago; and Alborg University, Denmark.
At base level, the initiative is motivated by food security and sustainability being increasingly major concerns for humanity. Food systems account for around 34% of total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, stemming from agriculture and land use, storage, transport, packaging, processing, retail, and consumption – with developing countries by far the major suppliers of agri-food imports to the EU. More research is required on how food value chains and agribusiness are adapting to sustainability realities and the reshaping of the environment.
The objective of the research proposal is to analyse the relation between sustainability (the Climate Change SDG) and agri-food export performance of select agri-food products.
Over a two-year period, the team will be exploring linkages between agri-food export companies, their entrepreneurial ecosystems and the environment. Dr Massa and his colleagues will be investigating agri-food product export and interrelated environmental dynamics at country, region, firm and product levels – engaging directly with businesses exporting to world markets, field experts, regional authorities and agency support.
Besides contributing to needed scientific knowledge in the area, and directly benefitting international businesses, the research is importantly expected to also inform policy in this evolving research field – an area within which interest is expected to incessantly grow in view of increasing environmental sensitivities and mounting sustainability concerns.