TRUE-COST-CH: Work Packages

Discover the objectives of the work packages (WP)

Graphic scheme representing the work packages of the True Cost of Food Project

 

yellow graphic with the title Coordination and Knowledge Transfer

Lead: UNIL (Dominique Barjolle) and UNISANTE (Murielle Bochud)

  • Develop a common ontology for food systems to serve the different disciplines involved in the project.

  • Coordinate the interdisciplinary collaboration leading to joint publications and other delivrables.

  • Create an online information platform, including the TCAF-CALC-CH web tool.

  • Disseminate project results to the general public through various channels.

 

blue graphic with the title Calculator & Economic Modelling

Lead: EPFL (Philippe Thalmann and Gino Baudry) and UNISANTE (Joachim Marti and Murielle Bochud)

  • Harmonize a TCAF methodology for the Swiss context, and calculate the appropriate metrics.

  • Develop a real food cost calculator (TCAF-Calc-CH) that considers different production methods, diets and other practices, and is accessible via an easy-to-use web interface (decision support tool).

  • Develop an economic model to identify taxation/subsidy schemes that integrate all costs into food prices, including environmental, health and social costs.

  • Calibrate the model for practical application to the Swiss case, and integrate the results of WP5 concerning alternative instruments influencing consumer decisions.

     

lavender graphic with the title Theory of Change and Policy-Making

Lead: University of Bern (Theresa Tribaldos) and UNIL (Dominique Barjolle)

  • Develop a theory of change for a more sustainable, equitable and resilient Swiss food system.

  • Create different transition paths and acceptable scenarios.

  • Analyze the impact of compensation mechanisms on the various players in the Swiss food system.

  • Test different levers using the web tool developed in WP2.

  • Analyze the policy framework of the Swiss food system and provide policy recommendations for reducing external costs.

 

green graphic with the title Value Chain and Business Practices

Lead: HEG Fribourg – CCRS (Philipp Aerni)

  • Apply the TCAF methodology on particular value chains together with businesses and identify inconsistencies.​
  • Survey different stakeholders in the private sector on their views and expectations on the transformation towards a sustainable, resilient, and fair food system, the tools they use to measure their impacts, and the role of TCAF.​
  • Conduct interviews with private sector and investor stakeholders to identify the innovation potential of applying TCAF metric as sustainability performance.

red graphic with the title Consumers Perceptions and Behaviours

Lead: UNISANTE (Joachim Marti) and BFH-HAFL (Thomas Brunner)

  • Investigate the demand-side effects, through focus groups, nutrients-based taxation, differential impact by socioeconomic incentives in the Swiss context, in particular consumer response to price changes, and substitution status​.
  • Analysis of trade-offs made by consumers between price at point of purchase, healthiness, environmental impact, and other impacts of their food purchase (hypothetical choice experiment, stated preferences data collection)​.
  • Conduct (controlled pricing and labeling experiments) experiments to test different ways of informing consumers about TCAF using a sample of food products/menus.
  • Test a set of possible pricing/price framing strategies, including compensation mechanisms and their interaction with food labeling in the virtual shopping environment​.