Sustainability transitions in agri-food systems through the lens of agent-based modeling: a systematic review

Agri-food systems (AFS) and their value chains are currently under pressure to minimize environmental degradation and secure a more sustainable future. Sustainability transitions are needed to shift from well-established, yet vulnerable systems to more sustainable systems. Agent-based modeling (ABM) as a method to study complex systems is now widely used in transition modeling. We performed a systematic review to analyze the potential of ABM to yield insights into sustainability transitions in AFS. Specifically, we investigated the understanding that agent-based models can support better understanding of sustainability transitions in AFS. We identified potential in participatory modeling methods as well as combining agent-based models with complementary methods. The assessment of the sustainability dimensions was quite balanced between economic and environmental dimensions, but the social dimension was underrepresented. Here, we identify the main features to further advance ABM of sustainability transitions in AFS.