The definition of short food supply chains developed by
Marsden is referenced by many subsequent
researchers. They argue that SFSCs have capacity to ‘resocialize’ or ‘re-spatialize’ food, thus allowing consumers
to make value-judgements about foods. The foods involved
are defied by the locality or even specifi farm where they
are produced. Interestingly, Marsden et al. (2000: 426) make
clear that “it is not the number of times a product is handled
or the distance over which it is ultimately transported which
is necessarily critical, but the fact that the product reaches
the consumer embedded with information.” What they mean
by ‘embedded’ with information is for example printed on
packaging or communicated in person at the point of sale.
This information “enables the consumer to confiently
make connections and associations with the place/space of
production, and potentially the values of the people involved
and the production methods employed” (2000: 425, their
emphasis). The diffrentiation of products in this way, in
theory, allows products to command a premium price, if the
information provided to consumers is considered valuable.
An important principle of SFSCs is that the “more embedded
a product becomes, the scarcer it becomes in the market”
(2000: 425).