‘Like the Stem Connecting the Cherry to the Tree’: The Uncomfortable Place of Intermediaries in a Local Organic Food Chain

Abstract

Producers' platforms are wholesale sales outlets for 'local' foods developed in the French organic sector to reclaim the success of mainstream organic distribution for its founders. This article examines four platforms in southeastern France (akin to 'food hubs' in North America) to understand the sociological stakes for the establishment of a local organic intermediary sales structure. The two-year study used semi-directive interviews and participant-observation of platform and institutional actors, who widely consider platforms to be 'short food supply chains' (circuits courts). The question of direct interaction between farmers and buyers was touchy for platform participants, manifesting itself in a discomfort with 'intermediaries' and in a debate over who should assure deliveries. By evoking the 'short chain' label platforms assimilate themselves with direct sales, distinguishing themselves as the 'real' organic, as opposed to newcomers profiting from the organic 'trend'. In the process, actors frame and adapt to organic sector evolutions in a way that is consistent with their awkward position as activists making a living off their cause.Actually, there is an ideological aspect, but what people don't get is that this ideology can be associated with practical things. Really practical and economic things -but not 'economic' in the usual meaning; a somewhat alternative economy where you talk, and where the purely economic operators who buy and sell for a profit integrate sociological and technical datawhich conventional [agriculture] doesn't do. You can't say it never does it, but less and less, saying 'if you can't [sell at that price], it's not a big deal, now [that we can buy products from] China, Chile, Morocco, etc.' (organic vegetable farmer, selling predominantly through long sales chains) At the beginning, we really wanted to stay in very short supply chains and not go through intermediaries. But after, we saw that there were kids who had the right to eat organic. (Lucien, organic farmer and president of a producers' platform)

Intermediate short food supply chains: a systematic review

“…, 2016). This leads to the literature treating direct and short chains as synonymous, merging direct sales into the same analytical category as mediated sales through a store, restaurant, food hubs or other middlemen (Rogers and Fraszczak, 2014).…”

“…Often the literature describes SFSCs as including a maximum of 0-1 intermediary (Ilbery et al, 2004;Chiffoleau et al, 2016;Le Velly and Dufeu, 2016), grouping direct sales with sales via retailers such as shops and restaurants (Chiffoleau et al, 2016). This leads to the literature treating direct and short chains as synonymous, merging direct sales into the same analytical category as mediated sales through a store, restaurant, food hubs or other middlemen (Rogers and Fraszczak, 2014).…”

Caracterização Das Cadeias Curtas De Abastecimento De Alimentos

“…Para ROGERS & FRASZCZAK (2014), os produtores podem estar tecnicamente envolvidos em vendas diretas ou de cadeia curta, mas na prática a relação comercial é normalmente mediada. Os autores defendem que a diferenciação entre vendas diretas e indiretas, ou seja, com ou sem intermediários, facilitaria o entendimento na abordagem para diferenciação das cadeias.…”

Meeting in the Middle: Scaling‐up and Scaling‐over in Alternative Food Networks

“…The earlier discussion of trust in values‐based supply chains stressed the importance of both processed‐based and interpersonal trust for mid‐sized farmers and the development of scaled‐up AFNs (Rogers and Fraszczak ; Stevenson and Pirog ). For the farmers in this study, trust in the food hub is based not only on following through on business agreements (process) but also through a demonstrated commitment to work with the farmer outside of the terms of economic exchange (interpersonal).…”