The discrepancy between global food production volumes and the scale of chronic food insecurity indicates that the critical factors of agricultural sector resilience are formed beyond the level of an individual enterprise or market. Traditional analytical categories (industry, supply chain, agricultural market) do not take into account feedback loops between levels of aggregation and therefore fail to provide an adequate basis for strategic management. The purpose of this article was to substantiate the essence of the agri-food system as an integral multi-level object of strategic management, to identify its structural subsystems, and to demonstrate the role of information flows as a system-forming attribute. The methodological basis of the study comprised the systems approach, comparative analysis of theoretical frameworks (global value chain analysis, the HLPE/FAO systems approach, the multi-level perspective), and the method of theoretical synthesis. The frameworks were selected based on the criteria of the scale of analysis (linear-systemic), operational suitability for management, and coverage of feedback. An original definition of the agri-food system was proposed as a multi-level socio-technical configuration whose system-forming attribute is the organisation of feedback loops around the production, distribution, and consumption of food. Three structural subsystems (functional, institutional, and managerial) were identified, whose interaction is mediated by information flows. A four-level architecture of the agri-food system was developed as an analytical tool for strategic management. Indicators and an assessment scale were proposed for each of the five criteria of information-flow quality. Using the Ukrainian grain value chain as an example, the architecture’s capacity to identify cascading inter-level contradictions was demonstrated, particularly between macro-level regulatory decisions and meso-level contractual obligations. The results can be used in developing national strategies for agri-food system development in the context of European integration. The proposed information flow assessment scale serves as a diagnostic tool for agricultural policy authorities and industry associations