Think of Alternative Food Networks (AFNs) as another option to the usual mainstream food networks, like supermarkets that source their produce from bigger industrialised farms that produce huge batches of food and create lots of food waste.
AFNs vary in structure, but in cities they often appear as farmers’ markets and pop-ups selling produce from small local farms and communities.
Whatever the form, these AFNs have been seen to increase the local economy in rural areas.
In Hong Kong, Singapore, and other Asian cities, the traditional pattern is that we go to the wet markets daily, buy fresh produce, then cook and eat it every day. But now that (practice) is competing with supermarket retailing, the preferred food shopping source because of lifestyle changes.
Singapore has done a great job in preserving all these wet markets in the neighbourhood. But Singapore, like many other cities, have leaned toward supermarket retailing.
— Associate Professor Qian Forrest Zhang
Urban-Initiated
These are AFNs started by people from urban environments, usually those tired of the corporate life and have decided to take on farming.
Rural-Initiated
Started by local farmers and communities.
Usually has contacts in big cities to make the distribution of produce easier.
Local farmers have the skills to produce regular and healthy yields. Their connection to the local community makes it easier to get support for their production.
Those from cities usually don’t have the farming experience or community connections to get started.
Local farmers tend not to have the connections in big cities to distribute their produce.
Rural-initiated AFNs, when successful, have the greater impact on rural revitalisation. But the problem is that it is very difficult to be successful.
AFNs become successful when they can mobilise the entire village or a rural community, and it is very difficult to organise rural leadership.
Assoc Prof Zhang found 3 types of leadership for these types of initiatives:
The official village authority. This can be village captains, town heads, or whatever the title for the local community.
Urban-driven AFNs, because they came from outside the village, usually have very little interaction with the community. So the impact they have on the broader community is very limited, which makes it harder to mobilise everyone.
Social solidarity groups. These are grassroots groups. It could be a lineage association, a religious organisation, or other social groups.
Urban activists coming from outside and then help organise the rural community.
— Assoc Prof Zhang
A good example of AFNs is the Beijing Farmers Market.
Started by an NGO over a decade ago, it has faced all kinds of difficulties, most significantly the funding for a venue to host the event regularly. Eventually, the Shangri-La Hotel stepped in and let them use the parking lot to host the farmers' market during the weekend.
So businesses and civil society organisations brought all kinds of producers and consumers together. This has led to a lot of new farmers realising that this is possible and profitable, now knowing that they could come to the Beijing farmers market on weekends to sell their produce.
— Assoc Prof Zhang
In order for AFNs to thrive, there needs to be an active push by communities to get them out there and interact with people in urban areas. NGO leaders or business leaders could do this by organising some food fairs or a farmers' market to showcase the locally available produce.
When you have these kinds of food fairs, then people will come again and again, and build relationships with each other. Even if that particular event doesn’t continue, the seeds of the network have been sown, so maybe people will be able to organise something else together.
— Assoc Prof Zhang
References
Wu, M., & Zhang, Q. F. (2025). Producer-oriented and consumer-oriented alternative food networks and rural revitalization in China: Distinct trajectories and variegated impacts. Habitat International, 156, 103289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103289
[SMU CP] Qian Forrest Zhang Primer Slides 2026
Joey TANG
Created on February 23, 2026
Start designing with a free template
Discover more than 1500 professional designs like these:
View
Discover Your AI Assistant
View
Urban Illustrated Presentation
View
Geographical Challenge: Drag to the map
View
Decisions and Behaviors in the Workplace
View
Tangram Game
View
Process Flow: Corporate Recruitment
View
Weekly Corporate Challenge
Explore all templates
Transcript
Think of Alternative Food Networks (AFNs) as another option to the usual mainstream food networks, like supermarkets that source their produce from bigger industrialised farms that produce huge batches of food and create lots of food waste.
AFNs vary in structure, but in cities they often appear as farmers’ markets and pop-ups selling produce from small local farms and communities.
Whatever the form, these AFNs have been seen to increase the local economy in rural areas.
In Hong Kong, Singapore, and other Asian cities, the traditional pattern is that we go to the wet markets daily, buy fresh produce, then cook and eat it every day. But now that (practice) is competing with supermarket retailing, the preferred food shopping source because of lifestyle changes.
Singapore has done a great job in preserving all these wet markets in the neighbourhood. But Singapore, like many other cities, have leaned toward supermarket retailing.
— Associate Professor Qian Forrest Zhang
Urban-Initiated
These are AFNs started by people from urban environments, usually those tired of the corporate life and have decided to take on farming.
Rural-Initiated
Started by local farmers and communities.
Usually has contacts in big cities to make the distribution of produce easier.
Local farmers have the skills to produce regular and healthy yields. Their connection to the local community makes it easier to get support for their production.
Those from cities usually don’t have the farming experience or community connections to get started.
Local farmers tend not to have the connections in big cities to distribute their produce.
Rural-initiated AFNs, when successful, have the greater impact on rural revitalisation. But the problem is that it is very difficult to be successful.
AFNs become successful when they can mobilise the entire village or a rural community, and it is very difficult to organise rural leadership.
Assoc Prof Zhang found 3 types of leadership for these types of initiatives:
The official village authority. This can be village captains, town heads, or whatever the title for the local community.
Urban-driven AFNs, because they came from outside the village, usually have very little interaction with the community. So the impact they have on the broader community is very limited, which makes it harder to mobilise everyone.
Social solidarity groups. These are grassroots groups. It could be a lineage association, a religious organisation, or other social groups.
Urban activists coming from outside and then help organise the rural community.
— Assoc Prof Zhang
A good example of AFNs is the Beijing Farmers Market.
Started by an NGO over a decade ago, it has faced all kinds of difficulties, most significantly the funding for a venue to host the event regularly. Eventually, the Shangri-La Hotel stepped in and let them use the parking lot to host the farmers' market during the weekend.
So businesses and civil society organisations brought all kinds of producers and consumers together. This has led to a lot of new farmers realising that this is possible and profitable, now knowing that they could come to the Beijing farmers market on weekends to sell their produce.
— Assoc Prof Zhang
In order for AFNs to thrive, there needs to be an active push by communities to get them out there and interact with people in urban areas. NGO leaders or business leaders could do this by organising some food fairs or a farmers' market to showcase the locally available produce.
When you have these kinds of food fairs, then people will come again and again, and build relationships with each other. Even if that particular event doesn’t continue, the seeds of the network have been sown, so maybe people will be able to organise something else together.
— Assoc Prof Zhang
References
Wu, M., & Zhang, Q. F. (2025). Producer-oriented and consumer-oriented alternative food networks and rural revitalization in China: Distinct trajectories and variegated impacts. Habitat International, 156, 103289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103289