QUALITY LABELS AND INSTITUTIONAL DENSITY IN THE AGRO-FOOD SECTOR:

The Case of Andalusia

Encarnación Aguilar (Universidad de Sevilla)Carmen Lozano (UNED)

Alberto Pérez (Universidad de Sevilla)Ignacio L. Moreno (Universidad de Wageningen)

Introduction

New agro-food context:

New Global Markets

New Consumption PatternsNew Territorial Approach

Introduction

Introduction

What about the Institutional Context?

IntroductionA composition of collective influences which make up the actions of individuals, and as a diversified entity

which follows a dependent path due to the cultural and socio-institutional influences it has inherited”

(Amin, 1998:73)Institutions are Collective Forces

Institutional Density

What are Quality Labels?

Methodology

“We couldn’t compete with other olive tree production areas where the average production is double or triple compared to ours and the costs are half, 50%. So, it was impossible to compete. Therefore, we had to compete in another sector, which was the quality sector”

(President of Cooperative, 56 years old).

The Institutionalisation of PDOs

PDO Date of creation Situation of the PDO Area (Hectares.)

Sierra de Segura 23 April 1993 EU Registration 33.900

Priego de Córdoba 29 November 1995 EU Registration 29.628

Baena 28 December 1995 EU Registration 60.000

Sierra de Cazorla 9 November 2000 EU Registration 31.500

Montes de Granada

5 April 2001 EU Registration 29.358

Sierra de Cádiz 12 June 2002 EU Registration 20.854

Poniente de Granada

25 September 2003

EU Registration 23.293

Estepa 4 November 2004 EU Registration 38.000

Sierra Mágina 28 December 2004 EU Registration 50.000

Antequera 1 April 2005 EU Registration 8.387

Campiñas de Jaén 22 March 2006EU registration

Rejected373.577

Jaén Sierra Sur 25 October 2006EU registration

Rejected44.355

Montoro-Adamuz 26 December 2007 EU Registration 53.126

Lucena 16 November 2009 National Protection 72.438

PDO Sierra de Cádiz

ENTERPRISE 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Troya Cantalejo S.L.

SCA El Agro

SAT 1184 San José Obrero

SCA Oleica Coripeña

SCAA Ntra Sra Remedios

SCA San Antón

Almazara La Pilas

Aceites Blazquez SL

Almazara El Vinculo

SCAA Ntra Sra del Rosario

SCA Sierra del Terril

SCA San Juan Bautista

IGP Aceite de Jaen

Olive Oil PDOs and LAGsTwo different phases

• Pre- LAGs:• Farmers initiatives• Slow increase link to geographic limitations

• With LAGs• More complex interest • Fast increase and geographical re-definitions• Hiding agenda

LAGs interest over farmers pre-disposition towards quality turn

Labelling strategies and Organic Agriculture

Implementing the PAAE

Local strategy for organic agriculture

Local coordination for existing policy areas

and administration levels Local forum for inhabitants

and representatives of Natural Protected Area

Common Strategy for the development of organic agriculture in the protected area

Production Consumption

Conclusions• The institutional support has led to the over-proliferation • The competitive advantages of the first labels have become

widespread

• Public policies are trying to achieve complex objectives for rural areas, but it is also true that institutional overprotectiveness is not the right path

• Existence of false expectations among the groups involved

• Lack of control this region has on the marketing and sales of its olive oil

• Lack of collective vision of agro-food sector

• The link between institutional intervention in the planning of territory development strategies and the expectations of local actors is essential for achieving success in a labelling strategy

• The situation of institutional dependence which many of these projects are subjected to, means a risk for the feasibility of these initiatives