Policy brief n° 1: Lowering the barriers for farmers to participate in sustainable public procurement

Implementation of Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) to advance Farm to Fork (F2F) targets is impossible without a novel approach to change the current purchasing systems and mindset. The bureaucracy and the lack of required primary functions of the supply chain, (e.g., processing, logistics, packaging) set unsurmountable barriers for farmers to enter the public procurement bidding process. The vicious circle closes the door for rural economies to thrive through local public procurement. There is a clear need for novel practical solutions for SPP to execute the F2F targets.