Governing an Urban Food Strategy: The Rise, Implementation, and Dismantling of Gualeguaychú's Right‐to‐Food Policy in Argentina

ABSTRACT This article analyzes the emergence, development, and eventual interruption of the urban food strategy of Gualeguaychú, an intermediate city in Argentina whose trajectory offers valuable insights into how local governments can operationalize components of the Right to Food and Food Sovereignty. The strategy's entry point was a high‐profile incident of glyphosate intoxication that intensified public concern about the health implications of agrochemical use. In response, the municipal government regulated agrochemical spraying but soon broadened its agenda towards a more comprehensive municipal food strategy aimed at promoting agroecology, strengthening short food supply chains, and fostering healthier diets. Was there a societal demand for such comprehensive change, or was this redirection primarily state‐driven? Drawing mainly on qualitative research—including public policy analysis, institutional document review, and interviews—the article examines how the strategy was implemented, which instruments were deployed, and how municipal–local food‐system stakeholder relations shaped its evolution. In doing so, it seeks to identify the key enabling factors and constraints that explain both the progression of the strategy and the conditions that ultimately led to its interruption. The findings show that the city achieved promising advances: It approved pioneering local legislation, supported agroecological production, and created participatory spaces for commercialization. Nonetheless, the strategy was ultimately interrupted due to the political turnover at the end of 2023. Structural weaknesses—such as the absence of a dedicated implementation team, limited stakeholder governance, and insufficient long‐term institutional and financial anchoring—left the strategy vulnerable to political change. By reconstructing this trajectory, the article highlights both the possibilities and the fragility of municipal‐led food policy initiatives in Latin America. Gualeguaychú's experience illustrates how the Right to Food can be locally advanced—but also how easily progress can be reversed when institutionalization is weak and continuity safeguards are absent.