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Forever Niche: Why do organic vegetable varieties not diffuse?

Author

Listed:
  • Rohe, Sebastian

    (Universitf of Oldenburg)

  • Oltmer, Marie

    (University of Oldenburg)

  • Wolter, Hendrik

    (University of Oldenburg)

  • Gmeiner, Nina

    (University of Oldenburg)

  • Tschersich , Julia

    (Utrecht University)

Abstract
While organic food has increased its market share in conventional food retail, virtually all organic vegetables are still conventionally bred. For decades, organically bred vegetable varieties remained a market niche, despite their socio-ecological benefits. This paper conceptualizes actors and activities around organic breeding as a Technological Innovation System (TIS) and analyzes what prevents these varieties from widely diffusing into conventional supermarkets. The investigated barriers relate to knowledge, market formation, investments, and legitimacy. The study is based on interviews with breeding initiatives and food retailers in Germany. Theoretically, the paper adds an innovation systems-perspective on the diffusion of organic varieties, a blind spot in the emerging debate so far. Furthermore, it contributes to the literature on sustainability transitions by introducing a novel empirical topic to the debate and reframing the TIS framework to analyzing fresh produce. Identifying existing barriers provides suggestions for practitioners seeking to successfully diffuse organic vegetable varieties.

Suggested Citation

  • Rohe, Sebastian & Oltmer, Marie & Wolter, Hendrik & Gmeiner, Nina & Tschersich , Julia, 2022. "Forever Niche: Why do organic vegetable varieties not diffuse?," Papers in Innovation Studies 2022/8, Lund University, CIRCLE - Centre for Innovation Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:lucirc:2022_008
    as

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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    agri-food transitions; Commons; organic breeding; diffusion; technological innovation systems; food retail;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O30 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - General
    • O31 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
    • Q13 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Agricultural Markets and Marketing; Cooperatives; Agribusiness

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