Farmer and market vendor perceptions of COVID-19 impacts on horticultural fresh food systems in Tonga, Fiji, and Samoa.

While fresh horticultural food systems in Fiji, Tonga, and Samoa were all adversely effected by COVID-19 restrictions, these impacts were more acute in Fiji. Given value chains associated with main urban centres were more likely to incur elevated postharvest loss, this would imply consumers were avoiding town centres and alternatively sourcing fresh fruit and vegetable from rural road-side vendors. Pacific road-side vendors appear to have provided an important fresh food distribution capacity during local COVID-19 travel restrictions.