Scientific principles of the formation and functioning of agri-food systems under modern conditions

Abstract

The article summarizes and deepens the scientific principles of the functioning of the agri-food system (AFS). It is emphasized that achieving balanced development of the AFS is attributed to ensuring the effective development of all its constituent elements on the basis of a rational sectoral structure in accordance with the requirements of the country’s food security. It is proved that the food supply of the country’s population must be studied not only from the standpoint of its essence as a business process, but also from the point of view of a systemic approach - as an agri-food system. The AFS structure is analyzed based on institutional, reproductivefunctional and sectoral approaches. It is revealed that the use of a systemic approach in studying the AFS structure requires adherence to the following principles: integrity and unity; hierarchical construction; structuring, which allowed considering the AFS as a holistic set of elements, which is characterized by the orderliness of connections and relationships, as well as the presence of structured subsystems. The influence of the laws of system organization on the AFS in static and dynamic contexts is generalized, which deepens the theoretical and methodological principles of the system’s functioning. It is concluded that the institutional structure of the AFS includes participants with a certain level of freedom and their own goals, as well as subjects that coordinate their activities. The theoretical essence of the AFS is specified, taking into account the cyclical nature of the reproductive process as a set of interconnected links - subsystems and components that function in a unity of principles and are subordinated to achieving a single goal. It is substantiated that the sectoral structure complements the institutional and reproductivefunctional structure of the AFS, allows for a comprehensive study of the social division of labor, agro-food chains and the creation of added value at the level of each participant.