This article highlights the motivational factors behind consumers' and tourists' decisions to buy local artisan cheese in Jämtland (Sweden). Empirically, the case itself diverts from the typical Franco-Mediterranean case in which both the actions of producers and consumers are embedded in historical, long-term culinary traditions and territorial features, nor is it the typical farmers' market or another market-driven direct produce system. The main purpose is to shed light on the motivational factors behind the purchasing decision of consumers and tourists by studying the attributes that consumers embody in the products. The article is based on two consumer surveys/short interviews, the first conducted in June 2012 and the second in February 2017. The results were tested against/related to the wider local food discussion conceptualized through four types of attributes. Namely, intrinsic and extrinsic attributes; post-modernity and environmental attributes; geographical and territorial attributes; and local and rural development attributes. The results in this article clearly show that consumers value a combination of different attributes from both market-driven direct produce systems and close typicity systems. Therefore, the construction of proximity from the point of view of the consumer can be derived from a complex set of attributes and motivational factors not normally highlighted in the localized food discussion.
During the 1980's collective action was initiated with the purpose of saving the remnants of traditional livestock farming in Jämtland. This led to the articulation of a local agro-food system (LAFS) that managed to commercialize important elements of traditional agriculture by adding elements of modernity. Farm diversification was an important strategy that led to the forward integration of farms that includes the start of small scale farm dairies, farm cafes, direct sales, at the farm, through markets and other local channels, B&Bs and outdoor tourism operations. In the mentioned process, foreign knowledge and experience led to the opening of a new market for traditional products. This case shows that the localization and appropriation of foreign elements can be a fruitful strategy to promote territorial development in regions like Jämtland. This article highlights how a LAFS was articulated within the frame of the birth of a new industry, composed by small, semi-artisan dairy firms and which institutional side effects that this experience has led to.
Entrepreneurial processes are most often based on new physical or organizational innovations; however, prior research has shown that the opening of new markets for existing products can be a key innovative component in an entrepreneurial process. Most research on innovation focuses on new technologies, products and organizational forms. However, the key role played by different marketing tools in entrepreneurial processes is seldom highlighted. In this study, we highlight how story telling can become a vehicle in an entrepreneurial process to open new markets for existing products and how national history and culture are used in story telling. This article highlights how the Georgian wine industry uses story telling to open a new market for Georgian wines and identifies elements used to differentiate Georgian wines from the current market division into the 'old' and the 'new world', with a product that embodies an ancient heritage, opening a market for historical wines. The study is based on in-depth interviews and content analysis using both phenomenography and text analysis. Results unravel meaning in market communication and enabled the identification of stories and the archetypes used to create consumer recognition. Sources are in-depth interviews, field visits and homepages of wineries.
Since the 1990s Swedish authorities have increasingly treated summer farms as businesses, expecting them to generate profits like any other firm. However, in addition to being financially independent, summer farms are expected to provide a number of services, to help maintain biological heritage, provide beautiful landscapes for tourists, and much more. Summer farmers are also forced to co-exist with other local stakeholders that base their activities on the same resources, e.g., adventure and nature-based tourism, agriculture, and other businesses. All of this creates a number of entrepreneurial challenges but can also open new windows of opportunity. The response of summer farmers has been to diversify activities to cope with shrinking income and the seasonal character of their trade. Most new business strategies include tourism or increasing the number of cattle rationalizing animal husbandry. The strategies have partly been influenced by policies and partly by new market opportunities. Departing from a business, spatial and institutional contextual analysis we identified five main entrepreneurial strategies, three of which are related to rural tourism, one is related to increasing the animal herd and the fifth is a no-strategy, maintaining status quo. This article analyses the reality of summer farms from a business perspective. The main questions to be answered are: How have summer farmers responded to the entrepreneurial turn in regional development policies? Which are their main business challenges and opportunities?
The re-emergence and modernization of traditional goat-cheese production in Jämtland led to the articulation of a localized agri-food system that represents the frontline of the return and reinforcement of local food in Sweden. Already in the 1970s, some initiatives were undertaken to formalize the productive activities of this branch and to improve the product quality. The most important project was the articulation of a cooperative that, unlike all other Swedish cooperatives, engaged its members in the development of a joint trademark, development of a standardized assortment, common marketing efforts and finding creative solutions for infrastructure problems. Despite the overall success, we also found some downsides. Producing goat cheese requires that at least two people are involved, because the workload often leads to body injuries and illness for people working alone. By studying the institutional frameworks, rules and regulations, the economic function and entrepreneurial dynamics, and the dynamics of knowledge and competences, the article highlights how and why farm dairies in Jämtland became reinforced and modernized. This grasps both the actions of individual economic agents and their interaction with their environment. A special emphasis was put on the role of regional authorities in this process. Even though many obstacles have been removed and the trade has found successful ways to solve strategic issues concerning product development and marketing, there are still important structural shortcomings that might decrease the profitability and endanger the future development of the trade. There is a lack of experience and infrastructure to solve more complex problems like animal health and the potential risks related to the consumption of unpasteurized cheese and the increasing incidence of Tick-Borne Encephalitis (TBE).
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