Global Value Chains and the Governance of ‘Embedded’ Food Commodities: The Case of Soy

Abstract

In recent decades, soy has emerged as one of the world's most significant food‐related commodities and is strongly linked to deforestation and habitat loss, especially in Latin America. However, only a very small proportion of soy is consumed directly as food by humans with the rest crushed to produce animal feed, oils, biofuel and other industrial products. We argue that the peculiar (but not necessarily unique) structural and institutional characteristics of the soy supply chain raises crucial questions about the promotion of sustainability in complex, non‐consumer facing global value chains (GVCs). The particular way that soy is ‘embedded’ in the food system has meant that consumer‐facing firms have been shielded from the externalities of its production and trade to a much larger degree than is the case for comparable food commodities. This, in turn, helps to explain the widely perceived inadequacies of the private certification of ‘sustainable soy’ – and ongoing and wider political struggles around land, labour and the environment – for more comprehensive and inclusive forms of governance.

Plant-Based Alternatives to Yogurt: State-of-the-Art and Perspectives of New Biotechnological Challenges

“…Nevertheless, the beany flavor of soy-based products and the presence of allergens are still considered critical commercial issues. Additional problems related to large-scale soy employment recently emerged, such as the sustainability of the production chain, the diffusion of transgenic cultivars, and the import/export governance among producing (such as the USA) and importer countries (such as those in the European community) [ 66 ], thus pushing the global research to investigate other alternatives.…”

Introduction: Bringing Institutions Back in the Study of Global Value Chains

“…To this end, Heron et al. () carry out in‐depth analysis of the GVC governance of soy in general and private standards schemes linked to the soy GVC in particular. The authors trace the actors that have shaped private certification initiatives related to GMO‐free soy and deforestation in Brazil and conclude that private standards have played a relatively minor (and largely ineffective) role in the governance of soy.…”

“…The authors argue that there is a need to bring domestic state institutions back into GVC analysis, as the state is bringing itself back into GVC governance because it experiences that firm-driven governance of GVCs affects their sovereignty over territory, rulemaking, producers and economic organization. Heron et al (2018) on their part also look at domestic private standards as an institutional arrangement through which GVCs are governed and regulated. In their contribution, the authors aim to overcome the 'firm centricity' of existing scholarship, which has looked mainly at how private standards are used by powerful retailers to control supply chains, by looking at the role of both state and non-state actors in the rise of such standards and the broader (domestic) institutional context in which they emerge.…”

“…In their contribution, the authors aim to overcome the 'firm centricity' of existing scholarship, which has looked mainly at how private standards are used by powerful retailers to control supply chains, by looking at the role of both state and non-state actors in the rise of such standards and the broader (domestic) institutional context in which they emerge. To this end, Heron et al (2018) carry out in-depth analysis of the GVC governance of soy in general and private standards schemes linked to the soy GVC in particular. The authors trace the actors that have shaped private certification initiatives related to GMO-free soy and deforestation in Brazil and conclude that private standards have played a relatively minor (and largely ineffective) role in the governance of soy.…”

Understanding the Stickiness of Commodity Supply Chains Is Key to Improving Their Sustainability

“…6 Supply chain actors, such as food processors, slaughterhouses, traders, and retailers, including countries that purchase these commodities, play a crucial role in shaping land-use dynamics by influencing demand, investments in infrastructure, financing, and government decisions. [9][10][11] An increasing number of governance interventions target these supply chain actors, including pushes for zero-deforestation commitments (ZDC). ZDCs aim to zero the deforestation driven by commodity supply chains, such as palm oil, beef, or soy.…”