Eleven recommendations have been sketched to guide future work on food self-sufficiency and local food systems in the five island societies:
Increase access to locally produced food for restaurants, public institutions, and local citizens.
Address consumer behaviour, preferences and eating habits.
Explore new business models geared towards the local market.
Investigate possibilities for diversifying the food production, including the option of transitioning a share of animal-based food production to plant-based options.
Develop a local strategy with an action plan and concrete goals.
Explore how public procurement can support the local food system.
Map local actors in the food system and establish or support local collaboration platforms.
Conduct local research and analyses to ensure that increased self-sufficiency leads to more economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable food systems.
Recognise that self-sufficiency holds different meanings in different contexts.
Ensure a systematic approach to the collection of data for calculations of self-sufficiency degree and the self-sufficiency ratio.
Gain greater insight into the extent of privately produced local food that is sold outside the official market to ensure accurate understanding of the degree of food self-sufficiency.