From 1 to 4 September 2026, RUSTIK took part in the XI International Conference on Localised Agri-food Systems, hosted at the International Land Use Study Centre (ILUSC), James Hutton Institute, in Aberdeen, Scotland.
The conference brought together researchers and practitioners to explore how localised agri-food systems can be strengthened and future-proofed in the face of interconnected environmental, economic, social and political crises. Discussions were organised around three core themes: mapping territorial trajectories of localised agri-food systems; territorial responses to intersecting crises; and valuing local food systems and local territories.
On 2 September, Petya Slavova of Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski presented RUSTIK research entitled “Going beyond short food supply chains while exploring local restaurants as a progressive place.” Her presentation focused on the Central Balkan area of Bulgaria—covering Troyan, Apriltsi and Ugarchin—and examined the role that local restaurants can play in connecting food, people and place.
Beyond short supply chains
Petya’s research moves beyond a narrow understanding of local food as a product sourced nearby. It investigates restaurants as active intermediaries within localised food systems: places that can make local producers more visible, create meaningful links between visitors and suppliers, and support a stronger connection to local landscapes, culinary traditions and community life.
The work identified 64 restaurants in the Troyan area and developed a typology based on food sourcing, cuisine and the guests attracted. It distinguished between:
- 39 “globalised” restaurants
- 15 “glocalised” restaurants
- 10 “localised” restaurants
The findings highlight that many suppliers to localised restaurants are family farms and household producers, including informal and small-scale actors that often remain overlooked in conventional food-system analysis.
Making local food visible
The research combined interviews with restaurant owners and food suppliers, local-menu experiments, information leaflets for restaurant guests, customer questionnaires and a 24-week online logbook tracking menu sales.
Participating restaurants introduced local menus comprising five dishes, with 80% of ingredients sourced locally. The results suggest that clearly communicating the local origin of food can make a tangible difference: dishes promoted as locally sourced recorded a weekly increase of 30% per food category. Restaurant visitors also showed strong interest in learning more about suppliers, with information leaflets helping to create direct connections between customers and local producers.
The research also found that local ingredients—including seasonal wild products such as nettles, mushrooms and herbs—can contribute to biodiversity, support local culinary heritage and create supplementary income opportunities for vulnerable groups and low-income households.
A shared vision for rural areas
RUSTIK’s participation in Aberdeen contributed to the conference debate on how localised agri-food systems can support resilient rural territories. Petya’s presentation underlined that restaurants are not simply commercial outlets: they can act as “progressive places” where local food, cultural identity, environmental resources and social relationships come together.
Recognising and strengthening the role of family farms, small-scale producers, local cuisine and localised restaurants can help rural areas build more inclusive and place-based pathways for endogenous development. Through this work, RUSTIK continues to explore how better data, stronger connections and greater visibility for local actors can support more sustainable and resilient rural futures.
