The importance of market gardeners’ characteristics, distribution channels and food supply chain challenges for the viability of their farms: insights from a territorial study in Belgium

In Northwestern Europe, while market gardening farms mostly align with agroecological principles, their viability is questioned. Conducted as part of a Participatory Action Research, our study explores the viability of 18 market gardeners in Coeur de Condroz (Belgium). Through semi-structured interviews, we identified four factors (i.e. working conditions, collaboration among farmers, distribution channel choice, and farmers’ aspirations) and five systemic issues (i.e. land availability, skilled workforce scarcity, inadequate training, consumer behavior, and lack of political recognition) affecting the viability of market gardening farms. Our results highlight the value of approaches incorporating farmers’ perspectives to study and support agroecological supply chains.