How do representations of sustainable food consumption change among different generations of critical consumers? Insights from Civic Food Networks in Milan

From the last decades of the 20th Century, facing the criticalities of the agri-food system, some\r\nconsumers in industrialized countries have started to build Civic Food Networks (CFNs) for sustainable\r\nfood provisioning. In Italy, the most widespread form of CFNs is Solidarity Purchasing Groups\r\n(SPGs). SPGs were founded both with the aim of acquiring sustainable food and with the political ideal\r\nof transforming society by reconfiguring the economic relations between producers and consumers.\r\nToday, in a context in which sustainable food is easily accessible, what is the sense for young people\r\nto start new CFNs? Using a selection of qualitative materials, the article compares the meanings that\r\ntwo different generations of CFNs founders attribute to their consumption practices. The results show\r\nthat they share similar representations of sustainable consumption, but the younger generation doesn’t\r\nattribute to it a political meaning. This reflects into a more flexible participation in CFNs.