Boundary Negotiations in a Self-Organized Grassroots-Led Food Network: The Case of REKO in Finland

Abstract

Self-organization is a term that is increasingly used to describe how engaged citizens come together to create sustainable food systems at the local community level. Yet, there is a lack of understanding of what this self-organizing activity actually means. While previous literature has addressed self-organization as an outcome of building consensus and a collective intentionality shared by the members of a group, we focus on the complex social processes involved when people with a diverse set of interests and motivations interact in the food network. In this study, we analyze what kinds of boundary negotiations emerge when grassroots-led food networks scale up. Our embedded single case study focuses on a REKO (‘REjäl KOnsumtion’, meaning ‘fair consumption’ in English) network in Finland comprising distributed local food groups and three types of actors: consumers, producers, and local administrators. We examine a conflict that arose within the REKO network in May–June 2016 when a small group of actors demanded that all local groups should implement similar rules, principles, and ethical standards. Our findings illustrate how moral, geographic, market, and power boundaries emerge in a self-organized grassroots-led food network. We further explicate the challenges that may appear within a self-organized grassroots-led food network, as it grows in scale and scope.

Community Self-Organisation from a Social-Ecological Perspective: ‘Burlang Yatra’ and Revival of Millets in Odisha (India)

“…Much of the research on community self-organisation with respect to food systems has focused on understanding the social processes in the emergence of grassroots-led food production and consumption networks [43], community-led alternative food initiatives [44][45][46], community supported agriculture, energy transition [42], urban planning [47], and social movements [48]. These studies focus on identifying principles of self-organisation in the organisational structure, understanding the motivations behind self-organisation, the features of self-organisation, how self-organisation manifests itself in practice, or the agency of individuals and communities that lead to successful self-organising or, in contrast, that undermine the process [43,[49][50][51].…”

“…Context is therefore understood as playing an important role in shaping the 'actual practices, ecologies, and materialities involved in the production, distribution, and consumption of food' [50]. It has been shown that at the core of self-organising behaviour can lie a 'self-emerging awareness' of individuals sharing a specific context [43] and "collective intentionality" [54] (p. 234). The context, most often used in understanding the emergence of self-organising behaviour or action, is in terms of ecological, technological, economic, and institutional factors [43].…”

“…It has been shown that at the core of self-organising behaviour can lie a 'self-emerging awareness' of individuals sharing a specific context [43] and "collective intentionality" [54] (p. 234). The context, most often used in understanding the emergence of self-organising behaviour or action, is in terms of ecological, technological, economic, and institutional factors [43].…”

Untitled

“…Besides the physical distance, main elements in defining local food are the limited quantities characteristic for smallholders, the environmentally The REKO model of alternative food network (AFN) is a suitable example of applying the principles of sustainable marketing. Founded in Finland in 2013 (Ehrnström-Fuentes & Leipämaa-Leskinen, 2019), it is a face-to-face short food supply chain, where a customer buys food products in immediate personal contact with the manufacturer, a direct relation which assures authenticity and trust (Renting & Marsden & Banks, 2003) in the commercial interaction. The name is an abbreviation of the Swedish "Rejäl Konsumtion", meaning "Fair Consumption" (Ehrnström-Fuentes & Leipämaa-Leskinen, 2019).…”

“…Founded in Finland in 2013 (Ehrnström-Fuentes & Leipämaa-Leskinen, 2019), it is a face-to-face short food supply chain, where a customer buys food products in immediate personal contact with the manufacturer, a direct relation which assures authenticity and trust (Renting & Marsden & Banks, 2003) in the commercial interaction. The name is an abbreviation of the Swedish "Rejäl Konsumtion", meaning "Fair Consumption" (Ehrnström-Fuentes & Leipämaa-Leskinen, 2019). The REKO local food groups connect producers and consumers and facilitate consumers' access to locally produced food at regular intervals, without the intervention of any middleman.…”