Revealing the circularities in farmers’ market networked infrastructure of Western Anatolia

ABSTRACT

The research goal herein was to characterize the innovations on which the building of circularities in the Western Anatolian Farmers’ Market Network was founded. In other words, rather than new circular economy research, this is the revelation and reconstruction of a highly networked food infrastructure that has been a locally rooted activity in daily life for centuries in different geographies, in different spatial and social forms, which neoliberal agricultural and marketing policies have recently attempted to displace. With this research, the nature of the food chain of these market territories, and the characteristics of their creators, were analysed in order to reveal how it transforms the physical and social territory. It was sought to explore and reveal the internal and external dynamics that form and foster the circularities while investigating the food network. This article attempted to contribute to discussions on ‘circularities in territories’ in the context of Western Anatolia. The main focus was on the farmers’ market networked infrastructure of the Küçük and Büyük Menderes River Basins due to their intertwined relationship with territories, rich product range, and deeply rooted market network. Farmers’ markets were inspected using the six ReSOLVE action plans.

KEYWORDS:

• Circular economy
• local circularity
• food networks
• farmers’ market
• market infrastructure

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 There are various categorizations of CE strategies, mostly on a macro scale, such as product lifetime extension, resource efficiency, closing supply chains, and residual waste management. However, in this study, the focus is placed on ReSOLVE, because it allows a multi-dimensional and layered inquiry. In addition to the circularity possibilities of macro structures, such as waste, water, and material re-cycle facilities run by companies or states, it is possible to investigate the local farmers’ markets established by family farms, which are very important as micro-narratives, with a multifaceted set of strategies of ReSOLVE.

2 This article covers the process of the ongoing PhD study under the supervision of Ayşe Şentürer, which has been written at the Istanbul Technical University, Graduate School, Architecture Department, Architectural Design Doctorate Program.

3 The design research project called ‘From Marketplace,’ has been running with Gamze Gündüz and Tangör Tan since 2018. A part of project’s outcomes was exhibited at the 4th Istanbul Design Biennial in 2018, and at the ‘A School of Schools: Design as Learning’ exhibition at Luma Arles, Parc des Ateliers in 2019.