Organised in the context of the Capes-Cofecub International Cooperation Project on "Agri-food systems and public policies " , this paper introduces the dossier . It seeks to contribute to this debate by shedding light on some of the food problems experienced in urban areas and, equally, on the responses that civil society and governments have been constructing to address them. The various contributions in the dossier address this aspect based on empirical studies carried out in different urban contexts, mainly in Brazil but also in France, and each one refers to major theoretical and social issues around food systems (food environments, supermarkets, food deserts, digital markets, food insecurity, solidarity, democracy, innovation, etc.).