Abstract
The aim of this session was to examine an alternative way of food consumption based on social and environmental justice, focusing on the theoretical and practical aspects of food ethics. Consumers’ choice, like voting in political systems, has the potential to transform the entire agri-food system. The study of food ethics in Western countries has been booming these days, as citizens’ interest in ethical schemes of food consumption, such as fair trade, organic and local food markets, has expanded considerably. Consumers in Japan have much less interest in food ethics than those in Western countries, but since they are living in a developed country, they are expected to have a more ethically conscious food purchasing behavior. In order to reflect the possibilities of popularizing a more ethical way of food consumption in Japan, this session provided an introduction to the function of Food Policy Councils in the USA, a comparison of CSA in Europe with the Japanese Teikei scheme, studies on the system of domestic fair trade initiatives and the attitude of seed-saving farmers in Japan and their consumption of the vegetables cultivated from those seeds, and a radical consideration of the relationship between food and life. Finally, a framework for understanding behavior related to food choice and a participatory evaluation system of ethical consumption were discussed.
