IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v10y2018i4p1142-d140420.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

We Don’t Want to Be Officially Certified! Reasons and Implications of the Participatory Guarantee Systems

Author

Listed:
  • Mamen Cuéllar-Padilla

    (Agroecology, Food Sovereignty and Commons Research Group, Cordoba University, Sociology Unit, C5 Building, Campus Universitario Rabanales, Universidad de Cordoba, 14080 Cordoba, Spain)

  • Ernesto Ganuza-Fernandez

    (IESA/CSIC-JA, Campo Santo de los Mártires 7, 14004 Cordoba, Spain)

Abstract

Official organic regulation in Europe is based on the third-party certification system to guarantee organic products. Many critics and dissatisfactions have motivated the emergence of other guarantee systems, based on an intense implication of producers and, in some cases, consumers and other local actors, involved in localised agri-food systems. They are called Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS), and are not recognised as valid guarantee systems by the official organic regulation. In the present paper, we analyse the main differences between the PGS and the third party certification system, deepening on their differentiated social and political implications. We conclude that the procedures behind PGS generate numerous positive impacts in the territories related to local producers (and consumers) empowerment and localised agri-food systems drive, while their implications make them not considered as a substitute to third party certification system, unless certain conditions of social consolidated groups and agroecological and food sovereignty perspective of food system take place.

Suggested Citation

  • Mamen Cuéllar-Padilla & Ernesto Ganuza-Fernandez, 2018. "We Don’t Want to Be Officially Certified! Reasons and Implications of the Participatory Guarantee Systems," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-15, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:4:p:1142-:d:140420
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/4/1142/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/4/1142/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Cook, Roberta L., 2001. "Emerging Trade Practices And Trends In The Fruit And Vegetable Markets," Agricultural Outlook Forum 2001 33077, United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Outlook Forum.
    2. Henk Renting & Terry K Marsden & Jo Banks, 2003. "Understanding Alternative Food Networks: Exploring the Role of Short Food Supply Chains in Rural Development," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 35(3), pages 393-411, March.
    3. JoAnn Jaffe & Michael Gertler, 2006. "Victual Vicissitudes: Consumer Deskilling and the (Gendered) Transformation of Food Systems," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 23(2), pages 143-162, June.
    4. Erin Nelson & Laura Gómez Tovar & Rita Schwentesius Rindermann & Manuel Gómez Cruz, 2010. "Participatory organic certification in Mexico: an alternative approach to maintaining the integrity of the organic label," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 27(2), pages 227-237, June.
    5. Hugh Campbell, 2009. "Breaking new ground in food regime theory: corporate environmentalism, ecological feedbacks and the ‘food from somewhere’ regime?," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 26(4), pages 309-319, December.
    6. Sarah Bowen & Tad Mutersbaugh, 2014. "Local or localized? Exploring the contributions of Franco-Mediterranean agrifood theory to alternative food research," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 31(2), pages 201-213, June.
    7. Calvin, Linda & Cook, Roberta L. & Denbaly, Mark & Dimitri, Carolyn & Glaser, Lewrene K. & Handy, Charles R. & Jekanowski, Mark D. & Kaufman, Phillip R. & Krissoff, Barry & Thompson, Gary D. & Thornsb, 2001. "U.S. Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Marketing: Emerging Trade Practices, Trends, and Issues," Agricultural Economic Reports 33915, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    8. Markus Schermer, 2015. "From “Food from Nowhere” to “Food from Here:” changing producer–consumer relations in Austria," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 32(1), pages 121-132, March.
    9. José Luis Vivero-Pol, 2017. "Food as Commons or Commodity? Exploring the Links between Normative Valuations and Agency in Food Transition," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-23, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Pablo Aránguiz & Guillermo Palau-Salvador & Ana Belda & Jordi Peris, 2020. "Critical Thinking Using Project-Based Learning: The Case of The Agroecological Market at the “Universitat Politècnica de València”," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-23, April.
    2. Biancamaria Torquati & Sergio Pedini & Fabio Maria Santucci & Riccardo Da Re, 2021. "Participatory Guarantee System and Social Capital for Sustainable Development in Brazil: The Case Study of OPAC Orgânicos Sul de Minas," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-18, October.
    3. Giovanna Sacchi & Lavinia Romanello & Maurizio Canavari, 2024. "The future of organic certification: potential impacts of the inclusion of Participatory Guarantee Systems in the European organic regulation," Agricultural and Food Economics, Springer;Italian Society of Agricultural Economics (SIDEA), vol. 12(1), pages 1-19, December.
    4. Gamze Gurler & Birtan Bozlu, 2022. "A Field Study on Food Communities in the Context of Ecological Habitus," Journal of Economy Culture and Society, Istanbul University, Faculty of Economics, vol. 65(65), pages 181-201, June.
    5. Alexander Wezel & Stéphane Bellon, 2018. "Mapping Agroecology in Europe. New Developments and Applications," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-3, August.
    6. González-Azcárate, Mario & Cruz-Maceín, José Luis & Bardají, Isabel, 2022. "Certifications in short food supply chains in the region of Madrid. Part of the alternative?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 195(C).
    7. Mamen Cuéllar-Padilla & Isabel Haro-Pérez & Mirene Begiristain-Zubillaga, 2022. "Participatory Guarantee Systems: When People Want to Take Part," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-18, March.
    8. Yuna Chiffoleau & Tara Dourian, 2020. "Sustainable Food Supply Chains: Is Shortening the Answer? A Literature Review for a Research and Innovation Agenda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-21, November.
    9. Sonja Kaufmann & Nikolaus Hruschka & Christian R. Vogl, 2020. "Bridging the Literature Gap: A Framework for Assessing Actor Participation in Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(19), pages 1-26, October.
    10. Salvatore Ammirato & Alberto Michele Felicetti & Massimiliano Ferrara & Cinzia Raso & Antonio Violi, 2021. "Collaborative Organization Models for Sustainable Development in the Agri-Food Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-22, February.
    11. Farreras, Verónica & Salvador, Pablo F., 2022. "Why do some Participatory Guarantee Systems emerge, become effective, and are sustained over time, while others fail? An application of the Ostrom social-ecological system framework," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).

    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. Padilla Bernal Luz Evelia & Reyes Rivas Eliver & Pérez Veyna Oscar, 2012. "Evaluación de un cluster bajo agricultura protegida en México," Contaduría y Administración, Accounting and Management, vol. 57(3), pages 219-237, julio-sep.
    2. Bianca Polenzani & Chiara Riganelli & Andrea Marchini, 2020. "Sustainability Perception of Local Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Consumers’ Attitude: A New Italian Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-18, January.
    3. Xia, Tian & Sexton, Richard J., 2009. "Retail Prices for Milk by Fat Content: A New Theory and Empirical Test of Retailer Pricing Behavior," Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Western Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 34(2), pages 1-20, August.
    4. Ahumada, Omar & Villalobos, J. Rene, 2011. "Operational model for planning the harvest and distribution of perishable agricultural products," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 133(2), pages 677-687, October.
    5. Francesca Galli & Fabio Bartolini & Gianluca Brunori, 2016. "Handling Diversity of Visions and Priorities in Food Chain Sustainability Assessment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-21, March.
    6. Epperson, J.E., 2010. "An Examination of the Market Structure of the U.S. Produce Industry," Journal of Food Distribution Research, Food Distribution Research Society, vol. 41(1), pages 1-6, March.
    7. Giovanna Sacchi & Leonardo Cei & Gianluca Stefani & Ginevra Virginia Lombardi & Benedetto Rocchi & Giovanni Belletti & Susanne Padel & Anna Sellars & Edneia Gagliardi & Giuseppe Nocella & Sarah Cardey, 2018. "A Multi-Actor Literature Review on Alternative and Sustainable Food Systems for the Promotion of Cereal Biodiversity," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 8(11), pages 1-29, November.
    8. Padilla-Bernal, Luz E. & Thilmany, Dawn D. & Loureiro, Maria L., 2003. "An Empirical Analysis of Market Integration and Efficiency for U.S. Fresh Tomato Markets," Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Western Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 28(3), pages 1-16, December.
    9. Paul N. Wilson & Gary D. Thompson, 2003. "Time Integration: Agribusiness Structure for Competitive Advantage," Review of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 25(1), pages 30-43.
    10. Daniel Coq-Huelva & Bolier Torres-Navarrete & Carlos Bueno-Suárez, 2018. "Indigenous worldviews and Western conventions: Sumak Kawsay and cocoa production in Ecuadorian Amazonia," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 35(1), pages 163-179, March.
    11. Claire Lamine & Danièle Magda & Marie-Josèphe Amiot, 2019. "Crossing Sociological, Ecological, and Nutritional Perspectives on Agrifood Systems Transitions: Towards a Transdisciplinary Territorial Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(5), pages 1-18, March.
    12. repec:ilo:ilowps:431257 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Tondel, Fabien & Woods, Timothy A., 2006. "Supply Chain Management and the Changing Structure of U.S. Organic Produce," 2006 Annual meeting, July 23-26, Long Beach, CA 21435, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    14. David Conner, 2004. "Expressing values in agricultural markets: An economic policy perspective," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 21(1), pages 27-35, March.
    15. Li, Chenguang & Sexton, Richard J., 2013. "Grocery-Retailer Pricing Behavior with Implications for Farmer Welfare," Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Western Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 38(2), pages 1-18, August.
    16. Jérémie Forney, 2016. "Blind spots in agri-environmental governance: some reflections and suggestions from Switzerland," Review of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Studies, Springer, vol. 97(1), pages 1-13, June.
    17. Volpe, Richard & Leibtag, Ephraim S. & Roeger, Edward, 2013. "How Transport Costs Affect Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Prices," Economic Research Report 161355, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    18. Best, Sarah. & Mamic, Ivanka., 2008. "Voluntary social initiatives in fresh fruit and vegetable value chains," ILO Working Papers 994312573402676, International Labour Organization.
    19. Juliana Lutz & Barbara Smetschka & Nelson Grima, 2017. "Farmer Cooperation as a Means for Creating Local Food Systems—Potentials and Challenges," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(6), pages 1-16, June.
    20. V. R. Ghezavati & S. Hooshyar & R. Tavakkoli-Moghaddam, 2017. "A Benders’ decomposition algorithm for optimizing distribution of perishable products considering postharvest biological behavior in agri-food supply chain: a case study of tomato," Central European Journal of Operations Research, Springer;Slovak Society for Operations Research;Hungarian Operational Research Society;Czech Society for Operations Research;Österr. Gesellschaft für Operations Research (ÖGOR);Slovenian Society Informatika - Section for Operational Research;Croatian Operational Research Society, vol. 25(1), pages 29-54, March.
    21. Love, Erin & Thilmany McFadden, Dawn D. & Jablonski, Becca B. R. & Bellows, Laura, 2020. "A Baseline Assessment of School Food Spending and Local Procurement: Exploring the Case of CO Hb 19-1132 and Other Public Policies," 2020 Annual Meeting, July 26-28, Kansas City, Missouri 304588, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.

    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:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:4:p:1142-:d:140420. 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.