Hybrid agri-food practices support rural socio-environmental resilience

What the study found: The review found that hybrid practices combining social innovation and sustainable entrepreneurship contributed to the socio-environmental resilience of rural producers. The abstract also notes that these initiatives were associated with positive effects on social inclusion, community empowerment, market access, income diversification, and environmental practices.

Why the authors say this matters: The authors conclude that the findings offer practical guidance for policymakers and practitioners. They say the results can help design integrated rural development strategies that create enabling institutional conditions, support cross-sector collaboration, and strengthen the long-term sustainability of hybrid agri-food initiatives.

What the researchers tested: The researchers conducted a systematic review using PRISMA 2020 methodology. They characterized social innovation and sustainable entrepreneurship practices in the agri-food sector, assessed their impacts across sustainability dimensions, and identified success factors and barriers.

What worked and what didn't: The review reported a predominance of studies on social innovation rather than sustainable entrepreneurship, with examples from Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania, and the Americas. The initiatives included social agriculture, community gardens, inclusive agribusiness models, women’s cooperatives, and regenerative agroecological projects; overall, they showed positive effects, while enabling factors included collaborative governance, local leadership, and the ability to combine different resources. Barriers included regulatory frameworks that were poorly adapted, reliance on external funding, and tensions between economic goals and socio-environmental goals.

What to keep in mind: The abstract does not describe detailed effect sizes, individual study quality, or how each initiative performed separately. It also states that the evidence came from a review and that the conclusions depend on favorable institutional environments and supportive public policies and legal frameworks.

Key points

• The review found that hybrid social innovation and sustainable entrepreneurship practices were linked with socio-environmental resilience in rural producers.
• Positive effects were reported for social inclusion, community empowerment, market access, income diversification, and environmental practices.
• The evidence base was more focused on social innovation than on sustainable entrepreneurship.
• Facilitating factors included collaborative governance, local leadership, and the ability to combine heterogeneous resources.
• Reported barriers included poorly adapted regulations, dependence on external funding, and tensions between economic and socio-environmental goals.