From concept to practice: a comparative analysis of circular economy indicators at the meso scale in the agri-food sector

Measuring and monitoring territories within the framework of the Circular Economy (CE) is gaining increasing relevance across Europe. As an evolving field involving both academia and business, CE generates growing demand for tools and methodologies capable of assessing its impacts at the territorial scale. Although often treated as an umbrella concept, CE is closely linked to sustainable development and is increasingly translated into strategies, programs, and action plans supported by indicators at enterprise, sectoral, and socio-economic levels. In this context, the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a key reference framework. CE contributes directly to several SDGs, particularly SDG12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), SDG9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), and SDG13 (Climate Action), highlighting the importance of robust indicators.Despite growing attention, the developmentand application of CE indicators in the secondary agri-food sector remain challenging, particularly in capturing life-cycle complexity and integrating environmental, economic, and social dimensions. While CE assessment has been widely addressed at macro scales, meso-scale studies remain limited, and existing indicators often fail to account for negative effects or performance declines. This research, conducted within the NODES project funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MUR) under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), addresses this gap by developing a tailored set of CE indicators at the meso scale, focusing on the secondary agri-food sector in the Piedmont Region (Italy).