Drivers of change in Burkina Faso’s vegetable food system

Abstract

Fruits and vegetables are a vital part of healthy diets, and among the most recommended sources of dietary nutrients, but are among the foods that are most likely to be deficient in diets across the globe. This paper takes a narrative synthesis approach to understanding how the food system enables and constrains vegetable consumption in Burkina Faso. The study describes vegetable food systems in Burkina Faso, providing context in terms of agroecology, socio-economy, and policy; discussing outcomes in terms of food and diets, equity and livelihoods, and sustainability and environment; and supply chains from production to consumption, including inputs, production and processing, trade and food environments. Burkina Faso has among the lowest vegetable availability and consumption in the world, and while various domestically and internationally grounded food system transformation processes are underway these are often disjointed. Based on this evidence synthesis, we propose a set of actions in push (production and supply), pull (demand and activism) and policy (legislation and governance) areas, which together with an explicit focus on vegetables can move Burkina Faso towards healthier, vegetable-rich food systems.