PhD Student: Melat Mekonnen; Partner: The Birmingham Wholesale Market; Supervisors: Dr. Laura Kudrna and Prof. John Bryson; Department of Applied Health Sciences
Anchor institutions are large entities that have a vital place within a community due to their economic, social, and overall wellbeing contributions. Typically these institutions “invest in their surrounding communities as a way of doing business”, and obtain a substantial amount of physical infrastructure which makes relocation unlikely. Hospitals and universities have been well recognised in the literature as anchors with coined terms of anchor “meds” or “eds” due to their contributions to tackling social challenges.
However, the overall definition and classification of anchor institutions are contested within the literature with for-profit businesses being one aspect of this debate since their ability to generate large health & wellbeing impacts while remaining profit-oriented is questioned. This debate is particularly relevant when considering large food system actors such as the Birmingham Wholesale Market (BWM). The BWM is the largest integrated wholesale market in the UK and supports the daily operations of over 15,000 businesses. Beyond its central role in Birmingham’s food system, the market has participated in food provision initiatives with charity organisations, such as The Active Wellbeing Society, to redistribute surplus food to over 300 community groups.
Considering this, the main aim of this project is to explore BWM’s role as an “alternative” anchor institution by exploring the contribution the market has on urban food security, sustainability, and consumer behaviour. This will involve utilizing a mix-methods approach of qualitative interviews with market stakeholders, a quantitative survey with customers of the market, and GIS mapping to visualise patterns in the food environment. This project will allow the market to obtain a more in-depth understanding of its current impacts, and will advance understanding of the contributions that alternative anchor institutions make to behavioural change within regional food systems.