IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jagris/v11y2020i1p17-d470030.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Sustainable Business Model Innovation vs. “Made in” for International Performance of Italian Food Companies

Author

Listed:
  • Alessandra De Chiara

    (Department of Social and Human Sciences, University of Naples L’Orientale, 80100 Naples, Italy)

Abstract

The quality of Italian food products, linked to Made in, has always been a competitive driver within foreign markets. However, today, getting quality choices also means engaging in responsible behavior. The paper investigates the relation between the choice of environmental and social standards and the international performance of a set of agri-food firms in Italy, examined through the multiple case study method and the tools of qualitative methodology. What role do standards play in attributing an added value to the quality of agroindustry products and differentiating sustainable products in foreign markets, thereby improving the international performance of the companies? These questions are investigated by the research in this paper. The results of the research show a significant correlation, in the interviewed companies, between corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices, with reference to the adoption of standards, and international competitiveness, measured in terms of market performance as it regards the growth of foreign demand and opening to new markets.

Suggested Citation

  • Alessandra De Chiara, 2020. "Sustainable Business Model Innovation vs. “Made in” for International Performance of Italian Food Companies," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-17, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:11:y:2020:i:1:p:17-:d:470030
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/11/1/17/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/11/1/17/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Martin S Roth & Jean B Romeo, 1992. "Matching Product Category and Country Image Perceptions: A Framework for Managing Country-of-Origin Effects," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 23(3), pages 477-497, September.
    2. Nigel Roome & Han van Kleef, 2007. "Developing capabilities and competence for sustainable business management as innovation: a research agenda," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/14319, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    3. Marco Lerro & Francesco Caracciolo & Riccardo Vecchio & Luigi Cembalo, 2018. "Consumer's Side of Corporate Social Responsibility: A Nonhypothetical Study," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(3), pages 689-710, November.
    4. Zheng, Yuqing & Muth, Mary & Brophy, Jenna, 2013. "The Impact of Food Safety Third-Party Certifications on China’s Food Exports to the United States," 2013 Annual Meeting, August 4-6, 2013, Washington, D.C. 149926, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    5. Alexander Rodriguez‐Melo & S. Afshin Mansouri, 2011. "Stakeholder Engagement: Defining Strategic Advantage for Sustainable Construction," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 20(8), pages 539-552, December.
    6. Herzfeld, Thomas & Drescher, Larissa S. & Grebitus, Carola, 2011. "Cross-national adoption of private food quality standards," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(3), pages 401-411, June.
    7. Salzmann, Oliver & Ionescu-somers, Aileen & Steger, Ulrich, 2005. "The Business Case for Corporate Sustainability:: Literature Review and Research Options," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 27-36, February.
    8. Hakan Karaosman & Gustavo Morales-Alonso & Mercedes Grijalvo, 2015. "Consumers’ responses to CSR in a cross-cultural setting," Cogent Business & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 2(1), pages 1052916-105, December.
    9. A. Ninni & M. Raimondi & M. Zuppiroli, 2006. "The success of “Made in Italy”: an appraisal of quality-based competitiveness in food markets," Economics Department Working Papers 2006-EP10, Department of Economics, Parma University (Italy).
    10. Cochran, Philip L., 2007. "The evolution of corporate social responsibility," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 50(6), pages 449-454.
    11. Everett Peterson & Jason Grant & Donna Roberts & Vuko Karov, 2013. "Evaluating the Trade Restrictiveness of Phytosanitary Measures on U.S. Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Imports," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 95(4), pages 842-858.
    12. Gary Gereffi & Joonkoo Lee, 2016. "Economic and Social Upgrading in Global Value Chains and Industrial Clusters: Why Governance Matters," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 133(1), pages 25-38, January.
    13. Tsunehiro Otsuki & John S. Wilson, 2001. "What price precaution? European harmonisation of aflatoxin regulations and African groundnut exports," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 28(3), pages 263-284, October.
    14. Müller, Julian Marius & Buliga, Oana & Voigt, Kai-Ingo, 2018. "Fortune favors the prepared: How SMEs approach business model innovations in Industry 4.0," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 2-17.
    15. Melanie Fritz & Gerhard Schiefer, 2008. "Food chain management for sustainable food system development: a European research agenda," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 24(4), pages 440-452.
    16. Dirk Boehe & Luciano Barin Cruz, 2010. "Corporate Social Responsibility, Product Differentiation Strategy and Export Performance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 91(2), pages 325-346, February.
    17. Becker-Olsen, Karen L. & Cudmore, B. Andrew & Hill, Ronald Paul, 2006. "The impact of perceived corporate social responsibility on consumer behavior," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 59(1), pages 46-53, January.
    18. Cynthia Giagnocavo & Silvia Gerez & Vanessa Campos i Climent, 2014. "Path to Cooperative Survival: Structure, Strategy and Regeneration of Fruit and Vegetables Cooperative in almeria and Valencia, Spain," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 85(4), pages 617-639, December.
    19. Marc Vilanova & Josep Lozano & Daniel Arenas, 2009. "Exploring the Nature of the Relationship Between CSR and Competitiveness," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 87(1), pages 57-69, April.
    20. Jongwanich, Juthathip, 2009. "The impact of food safety standards on processed food exports from developing countries," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(5), pages 447-457, October.
    21. Raymond J. Jones & Timothy M. Reilly & Marcus Z. Cox & Brooklyn M. Cole, 2017. "Gender Makes a Difference: Investigating Consumer Purchasing Behavior and Attitudes Toward Corporate Social Responsibility Policies," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 24(2), pages 133-144, March.
    22. Lo, Chris K.Y. & Yeung, Andy C.L. & Cheng, T.C.E., 2012. "The impact of environmental management systems on financial performance in fashion and textiles industries," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 135(2), pages 561-567.
    23. Massimo Battaglia & Francesco Testa & Lara Bianchi & Fabio Iraldo & Marco Frey, 2014. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Competitiveness within SMEs of the Fashion Industry: Evidence from Italy and France," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 6(2), pages 1-22, February.
    24. Heledd Jenkins, 2006. "Small Business Champions for Corporate Social Responsibility," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 67(3), pages 241-256, September.
    25. Marco Lerro & Riccardo Vecchio & Francesco Caracciolo & Stefano Pascucci & Luigi Cembalo, 2018. "Consumers' heterogeneous preferences for corporate social responsibility in the food industry," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 25(6), pages 1050-1061, November.
    26. Tiziana De Magistris & Teresa Del Giudice & Fabio Verneau, 2015. "The Effect of Information on Willingness to Pay for Canned Tuna Fish with Different Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Certification: A Pilot Study," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(2), pages 457-471, July.
    27. Knox, Simon & Maklan, Stan, 2004. "Corporate Social Responsibility:: Moving Beyond Investment Towards Measuring Outcomes," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 22(5), pages 508-516, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Massimo Battaglia & Francesco Testa & Lara Bianchi & Fabio Iraldo & Marco Frey, 2014. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Competitiveness within SMEs of the Fashion Industry: Evidence from Italy and France," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 6(2), pages 1-22, February.
    2. Mercedes Rubio‐Andrés & María del Mar Ramos‐González & Miguel Ángel Sastre‐Castillo & Ignacio Danvila‐del‐Valle, 2020. "Exploring sustainability, good governance, and social responsibility in small and medium enterprises," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(2), pages 852-869, March.
    3. Fabio Gaetano Santeramo & Emilia Lamonaca, 2019. "On the impact of non-tariff measures on trade performances of the African agri-food sector," Agrekon, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(4), pages 389-406, October.
    4. Chia-Hung Lee & Pei-Ing Wu & Je-Liang Liou & Shou-Lin Yang, 2022. "The Monetary Value of Corporate Social Responsibility: The Impact of Tea Trees Growing Project between Corporates and Taiwan’s Aboriginal Farmers on Consumers," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-18, July.
    5. Fabio Gaetano Santeramo & Emilia Lamonaca, 2019. "The Effects of Non‐tariff Measures on Agri‐food Trade: A Review and Meta‐analysis of Empirical Evidence," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 70(3), pages 595-617, September.
    6. Mohammed, Rezgar & Zheng, Yuqing, 2017. "International Diffusion Of Food Safety Standards: The Role Of Domestic Certifiers And International Trade," Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 49(2), pages 296-322, May.
    7. Santeramo, Fabio G., 2017. "On Non-Tariff Measures and Changes in Trade Routes: From North-North to South-South Trade?," 2017 International Congress, August 28-September 1, 2017, Parma, Italy 263493, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    8. María del Mar Ramos-González & Mercedes Rubio-Andrés & Miguel Ángel Sastre-Castillo, 2022. "Effects of socially responsible human resource management (SR-HRM) on innovation and reputation in entrepreneurial SMEs," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 18(3), pages 1205-1233, September.
    9. Ioanna Boulouta & Christos Pitelis, 2014. "Who Needs CSR? The Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on National Competitiveness," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 119(3), pages 349-364, February.
    10. Marcela Rocha Haase Uhlig & Emerson Wagner Mainardes & Valcemiro Nossa, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility and consumer's relationship intention," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(1), pages 313-324, January.
    11. Carla Gonzales-Gemio & Claudio Cruz-Cázares & Mary Jane Parmentier, 2020. "Responsible Innovation in SMEs: A Systematic Literature Review for a Conceptual Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(24), pages 1-27, December.
    12. Tomina Saveanu & Daniel Badulescu & Sorana Saveanu & Maria-Madela Abrudan & Alina Badulescu, 2021. "The Role of Owner-Managers in Shaping CSR Activity of Romanian SMEs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-19, October.
    13. Schuster, Monica & Maertens, Miet, 2013. "Do private standards create exclusive supply chains? New evidence from the Peruvian asparagus export sector," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 291-305.
    14. Costa, Cláudia & Lages, Luis Filipe & Hortinha, Paula, 2015. "The bright and dark side of CSR in export markets: Its impact on innovation and performance," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 24(5), pages 749-757.
    15. Subhajit Bhattacharya, 2017. "Does corporate social responsibility contribute to strengthen brand equity? An empirical study," International Review on Public and Nonprofit Marketing, Springer;International Association of Public and Non-Profit Marketing, vol. 14(4), pages 513-533, December.
    16. Ali Uyar & Mehmet Ali Koseoglu & Cemil Kuzey & Abdullah S Karaman, 2023. "Does firm strategy influence corporate social responsibility and firm performance? Evidence from the tourism industry," Tourism Economics, , vol. 29(5), pages 1272-1301, August.
    17. Marco Lerro & Riccardo Vecchio & Francesco Caracciolo & Stefano Pascucci & Luigi Cembalo, 2018. "Consumers' heterogeneous preferences for corporate social responsibility in the food industry," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 25(6), pages 1050-1061, November.
    18. Ekta Sharma & Ruchi Tewari, 2018. "Engaging Employee Perception for Effective Corporate Social Responsibility: Role of Human Resource Professionals," Global Business Review, International Management Institute, vol. 19(1), pages 111-130, February.
    19. Bin Shen, 2014. "Sustainable Fashion Supply Chain: Lessons from H&M," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 6(9), pages 1-14, September.
    20. Isabelle Alphonse & Claire Dupont & Ferauge Perrine & Sylvie Scoyez, 2018. "Sensitivity Of Directors To Workplace Wellbeing And Risk Management: Evidence From Small And Medium Enterprises In Belgium," Global Journal of Business Research, The Institute for Business and Finance Research, vol. 12(1), pages 79-92.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:11:y:2020:i:1:p:17-:d:470030. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.