Agri-food marketing as a driver of food system transformation: strategic imperatives of sustainability and social responsibility

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to examine the role of agri-food marketing as a key driver of food system transformation under global structural shifts, climate challenges, and social inequality. The central hypothesis assumes that the contemporary food system is evolving from a mass production model towarda network-based paradigm of sustainable development, in which marketing functions as a strategic mechanism harmonizing economic efficiency, social equity, and environmental resilience. A typology ofagri-food marketing transmission channels is proposed, including economic, institutional, informational,social, environmental, and ethical mechanisms. The findings demonstrate that marketing acts not merely as an intermediary between producers and consumers but as a coordinator of interests across the entire food chain, creating synergy between economic performance, social justice, and sustainability. The developed typology of food markets and marketing transmission channels constitutes the authors original contribution to the theoretical framework of strategic food system management. The practical value of the study lies in its applicability to policy design in food security, investment planning, and public-private partnership development.