Territorial Social Innovation and Alternative Food Networks: The Case of a New Farmers’ Cooperative on the Island of Ibiza (Spain)

Abstract

Social innovation is gaining attention as a perspective that stresses the relevance of transforming social relations to promote sustainable territorial development. This paper adopts the social innovation approach to examine Alternative Food Networks. The main aim of the study is to identify key factors in the emergence and development of social innovation processes that give rise to new organisational formulas among farmers, which contribute to the coordination and efficiency of food supply in Alternative Food Networks. The article provides an original conceptual framework on territorial social innovation (TerriSI), which is empirically tested in a case study in Ibiza (Spain). Through a mixed methods approach, the study analyses the emergence and development of a new agricultural cooperative that involves producers participating in Alternative Food Networks in Ibiza. This is considered a socially innovative initiative since it comprises novel social reconfigurations within the local context. The findings underline key factors of territorial social innovation linked to the particular conditions of territories, triggers, leadership, coordination mechanisms, and the capacity to disseminate innovation through the territory.

Organizational Models of Alternative Food Networks within the Rural–Urban Interface

“…Therefore, we can conclude that AFNs emerge via the establishment of new networks initiated by coordinating entities (public-private partnerships, associations of farmers, large farms, intermediary wholesale ventures, self-government, etc.) or via the reconfiguration of existing mechanisms between actors in a network, in line with Vercher (2022). It is therefore possible to agree with the definition of AFNs as hybrid, bi-focal, and commercial and at the same time social innovations generating both economic and social value.…”

“…AFNs were themselves conceptualized as innovations per se as part of the initial interest in the topic (Vercher 2022). Other studies perceive AFNs as a form of social innovation stemming from food communities (Kirwan et al 2017), which can be understood as grassroots communities in the context of socio-technical transition theory (Geels and Schot 2007).…”

“…Other studies perceive AFNs as a form of social innovation stemming from food communities (Kirwan et al 2017), which can be understood as grassroots communities in the context of socio-technical transition theory (Geels and Schot 2007). A number of authors therefore understand the formation of alternative, localized links between consumers and producers in small food systems as an SI process (Vercher 2022), while several studies have already evaluated its evolutionary patterns (Geels and Schot 2007;Marletto and Sillig 2019). Despite the fact that AFNs are not necessarily associated with the emergence of new technical solutions, as long as they are based on DIY solutions of local communities (Neumeier 2012), a number of case studies have pointed to new, mainly digital technological solutions that enable the operation of AFNs from an organizational and process-based point of view (Samoggia et al 2021).…”

Importance of productive units in the rural development of the Guano canton, Ecuador

“…La necesidad de generar mejores ingresos económicos y ser parte del desarrollo regional ha originado la necesidad de crear nuevas iniciativas productivas o unidades de negocio en las zonas rurales (Berdegué et al, 2015). El desarrollo de las zonas rurales abarca un conjunto de fenómenos sociales, culturales, políticos como económicos, los mismos que afectan directamente al momento de generar un negocio (Monin et al, 2014;Vercher, 2022). Para la creación de estos negocios, es necesario que la participación de los actores y agentes del desarrollo sea impulsada a través de la participación de las fuerzas productivas mediante asociaciones o de forma individual (Rudolf y Paulisch, 2010).…”

Cambios en la demanda y estrategias de adaptación en producciones agrarias sostenibles durante el confinamiento por la pandemia COVID-19

“…Sin embargo, también son evidentes sus ventajas competitivas, derivadas, por ejemplo, de las redes entre agricultores, o incluso entre agricultores y consumidores, con un arraigo territorial significativo (Capellari y De Stefano, 2016;Belletti y Marescotti, 2020). Con frecuencia, en estos sistemas locales concurren, además, innovaciones sociales (Vercher, 2022), que a la postre son clave para su competitividad, como también ponen de relieve muchas experiencias en la Unión Europa (Vitterso et al, 2019), y la importancia que la propia Comisión Europea concede a las estrategias basadas en las cadenas cortas.Estos sistemas agroalimentarios han demostrado su elevada capacidad de respuesta en momentos de crisis. Por ejemplo, durante la crisis del 2008 las empresas con estrategias más innovadoras (muchas eran grandes, pero algunas eran pequeñas y medianas empresas) obtuvieron los mejores resultados productivos y económicos (Zouaghi y Sánchez, 2016).…”