Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
(Marsden, 2006). Some urban consumers took the initiative to organize farmers' markets,
mainly by contacting local small-scale subsistence-style producers and convincing them to
come and sell their products in the city markets that were created for that purpose. This
initiative was very successful, and just 2 years later there were more than 200 farmers'
markets in the Czech Republic (including Pilsen). The total turnover reached 1.5 billion
CZK in 2011 (1 euro = 25 CZK). This figure is still very low compared to the financial
power of the retail chains but it shows the rapid progression of farmers' markets, which
initiated important changes in consumer demands. Consumers thus discovered food
quality as defined by product and process based qualities. This evolution was
accompanied by a shift in the relationship between producers and consumers, linking rural
and urban areas. After those first years, farmers can now choose at which of the various
farmers' markets in Pilsen to offer their products.
In Santorini, the transition was initiated by winemakers working with the processing
sub-regime, and in close partnership with the tourism regime. Historically, wine was made
in small-scale peasant winemaking installations. After 1970, with the rapid growth of
tourism, farmers preferred to be engaged in tourism and in professions that provided
greater and more reliable income. Although grapes were still produced, winemaking
activities and the wine trade had generally ceased. Wine was thus no longer made by
grape growers, but by private wineries and by the Union of Cooperatives of Santorini
('SantoWines'). During the 1980s, a well-known national winemaker took advantage of
the specificities of Santorini wine and started quality improvement experiments. This
individual developed a new winery on the island, based on new winemaking techniques.
The winery was built in an area with vineyards, remote from tourism but close to the
archeological site of Acrotiri. It combined facilities for the production and bottling of
quality wine, along with facilities which offered guided tours to tourists. Almost at the
same time (in 1990), SantoWines constructed a new winery and began to bottle wine, 2
years later creating a wine tourism centre. These developments also involved new entrants
into agriculture who came back to the island to produce quality wine. The purpose of the
change was not only to improve the wine, but also - or in fact mainly - to meet tourists'
expectations concerning both wine quality (less alcohol and acidity, consistent quality,
storage quality, better packaging) and the rising demand for oenotourism (visits to
wineries coupled with cultural and historical places and events).
A point of commonality between the three cases is that although the niches were
clearly initiated within one of the sub-regimes (producers in Rennes, consumers in Pilsen,
processors in Santorini), partnerships with actors representing the sub-regime or even
another regime (tourism in Santorini) were absolutely necessary from the start. This lead
to 'niche tandems': producers enrolled consumers in Rennes; consumers enrolled
producers in Pilsen; and processors enrolled the tourism industry in Santorini.
In Rennes, the construction of the niche was initiated in close partnership with
consumers: the producers who initiated alternative and local marketing solutions had
managed to meet the expectations of militant urban consumers (the so-called
'consum'actors') who used food choices as a means to express their convictions regarding
environmental and economic solidarity.
In Pilsen, collaboration between consumers and local farmers was necessary. The
organizers of the first farmers' markets described the initial lack of confidence amongst
the farmers, and their struggle to convince enough farmers to run a successful market.
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