Creating Ethical Markets or Marketing Ethics? A Critical Exploration of Ethical Value Networks in Chilean and Peruvian Viticulture and Oenology

<p>The global integration of agriculture has increasingly exposed rural groups in Latin America, and other regions of the Global South, to external economic forces. This integration, encouraged by neoliberal ideology, has in many ways exacerbated underdevelopment and peripherality of these regions. Small-scale farmers tend to disproportionately suffer from trade inequality and a range of negative social, economic, and environmental outcomes associated with the integration of agriculture. In response, consumers in the Global North have become more concerned about how food is being produced and to what standards, particularly when production takes place in the South. In part, this has driven the rise of what this research theorises as ethical value networks and linked product labels. Diverse networks and product labels based in social justice, sustainability, quality and origin have been promoted as alternative models to globalised agriculture. It is claimed that these alternative networks assist rural groups otherwise disadvantaged by neoliberal globalisation by facilitating access to higher-value ethical niche markets, while encouraging localised ethical forms of development. This research critically explores two examples of ethical value networks in South American viticulture. It examines the use of fair trade certifications in Chilean wine and the protected designation of origin mark on pisco from Peru. This research emphasises the importance of local social, economic, and political contexts in the formation and outcomes of ethical value networks. It argues that despite the potential of the two studied networks to encourage local social and community development, entrenched socio-economic inequalities in Chile and Peru have hindered the expected positive outcomes of these ethical value networks. Moreover, this thesis argues that the studied networks have in many ways worsened local rural inequalities by supporting industrial and newer producers while excluding the most vulnerable actors in the wine and pisco sectors. Therefore, although this thesis illustrates the potential capacities of ethical value networks in fostering local development outcomes through product labelling, it also reveals the main limitations of these networks as currently implemented.</p>

Creating Ethical Markets or Marketing Ethics? A Critical Exploration of Ethical Value Networks in Chilean and Peruvian Viticulture and Oenology

<p>The global integration of agriculture has increasingly exposed rural groups in Latin America, and other regions of the Global South, to external economic forces. This integration, encouraged by neoliberal ideology, has in many ways exacerbated underdevelopment and peripherality of these regions. Small-scale farmers tend to disproportionately suffer from trade inequality and a range of negative social, economic, and environmental outcomes associated with the integration of agriculture. In response, consumers in the Global North have become more concerned about how food is being produced and to what standards, particularly when production takes place in the South. In part, this has driven the rise of what this research theorises as ethical value networks and linked product labels. Diverse networks and product labels based in social justice, sustainability, quality and origin have been promoted as alternative models to globalised agriculture. It is claimed that these alternative networks assist rural groups otherwise disadvantaged by neoliberal globalisation by facilitating access to higher-value ethical niche markets, while encouraging localised ethical forms of development. This research critically explores two examples of ethical value networks in South American viticulture. It examines the use of fair trade certifications in Chilean wine and the protected designation of origin mark on pisco from Peru. This research emphasises the importance of local social, economic, and political contexts in the formation and outcomes of ethical value networks. It argues that despite the potential of the two studied networks to encourage local social and community development, entrenched socio-economic inequalities in Chile and Peru have hindered the expected positive outcomes of these ethical value networks. Moreover, this thesis argues that the studied networks have in many ways worsened local rural inequalities by supporting industrial and newer producers while excluding the most vulnerable actors in the wine and pisco sectors. Therefore, although this thesis illustrates the potential capacities of ethical value networks in fostering local development outcomes through product labelling, it also reveals the main limitations of these networks as currently implemented.</p>

Bottling the Colonial Unconscious: Ethical value networks and the commodification of fairness in the South African wine industry

<p>The rise of ethical certifications was greeted with optimism by scholars, activists and development practitioners, who predicted they would help to redistribute power and profit more equitably in South-North commodity trade, which has long been an engine of wealth extraction and underdevelopment in the resource periphery. The explicit attachment of value to the social and territorial origin of agro-food products would allow marginalised producers to resist corporate governance, race-to-the-bottom processes, and commodity fetishism. This would result in the retention of higher value at the production end of the chain, thereby fostering sustainable development in rural areas in the Global South. I investigate the extent to which power and profit is indeed redistributed more equitably in these new ‘ethical value networks’, through a case study of the South African wine industry. Complex apparatus of standards-setting, verification and auditing have formed the basis of strategies for post-apartheid transformation, redistribution and development in the South African wine industry, with progress conceptualised as taking place at the level of business. In this context, ethical certification constitutes a contemporary labour relations paradigm which in key ways reproduces ‘colonial unconscious’ discourses derived from the legacies of slavery, apartheid and farm paternalism. These embedded discursive power formations restrict the transformative potential of ethical certification. For ethical development to occur as a result of ethical value network formation, I argue that workers must gain greater agency and regulatory capability in the governance of these networks. I find also that ethical certification has not been an effective economic upgrading strategy for the South African wine industry. Instead, due to their deployment within oligopolistic networks, ethics have become commodified, and subject to neoliberal governance. Northern retailers have used their existing power to accumulate the value created by alignment with ethical conventions, and to avoid the costs. Ethical certifications compound the severe ‘cost-price squeeze’ faced by wine producers. This case study has broader implications for the theory of ethical value networks: showing that they are relational, geographically contingent, and remain susceptible to asymmetric governance and accumulation patterns.</p>

Bottling the Colonial Unconscious: Ethical value networks and the commodification of fairness in the South African wine industry

<p>The rise of ethical certifications was greeted with optimism by scholars, activists and development practitioners, who predicted they would help to redistribute power and profit more equitably in South-North commodity trade, which has long been an engine of wealth extraction and underdevelopment in the resource periphery. The explicit attachment of value to the social and territorial origin of agro-food products would allow marginalised producers to resist corporate governance, race-to-the-bottom processes, and commodity fetishism. This would result in the retention of higher value at the production end of the chain, thereby fostering sustainable development in rural areas in the Global South. I investigate the extent to which power and profit is indeed redistributed more equitably in these new ‘ethical value networks’, through a case study of the South African wine industry. Complex apparatus of standards-setting, verification and auditing have formed the basis of strategies for post-apartheid transformation, redistribution and development in the South African wine industry, with progress conceptualised as taking place at the level of business. In this context, ethical certification constitutes a contemporary labour relations paradigm which in key ways reproduces ‘colonial unconscious’ discourses derived from the legacies of slavery, apartheid and farm paternalism. These embedded discursive power formations restrict the transformative potential of ethical certification. For ethical development to occur as a result of ethical value network formation, I argue that workers must gain greater agency and regulatory capability in the governance of these networks. I find also that ethical certification has not been an effective economic upgrading strategy for the South African wine industry. Instead, due to their deployment within oligopolistic networks, ethics have become commodified, and subject to neoliberal governance. Northern retailers have used their existing power to accumulate the value created by alignment with ethical conventions, and to avoid the costs. Ethical certifications compound the severe ‘cost-price squeeze’ faced by wine producers. This case study has broader implications for the theory of ethical value networks: showing that they are relational, geographically contingent, and remain susceptible to asymmetric governance and accumulation patterns.</p>

Sorting It Out: Identifying and Addressing Conflicts and Business Ethics in Global Value Networks

Global value networks are often large, complex, and opaque. Understanding the relationships among stakeholders involved in these networks or organizations can be challenging. This card sort task provides an interactive way to engage participants in questioning the roles of stakeholders who are involved in a business ethics dilemma or an organizational product failure. This card sort task and discussion activity encourages participants to recognize that stakeholders may hold different knowledge, responsibility, or power; identify competing, conflicting, or complementary interests across stakeholders; articulate logical arguments; and engage in debate, compromise, and critical evaluation. This technique has been used successfully with undergraduate and postgraduate business, management, and social science students and is suitable for in-person and remote classes.

How to Realize the Benefits of Point-of-Care Testing at the General Practice: A Comparison of Four High-Income Countries

Background: In some countries, such as the Netherlands and Norway, point of care testing (POCT) is more widely implemented in general practice compared to countries such as England and Australia. To comprehend what is necessary to realize the benefits of POCT, regarding its integration in primary care, it would be beneficial to have an overview of the structure of healthcare operations and the transactions between stakeholders (also referred to as value networks). The aim of this paper is to identify the current value networks in place applying to POCT implementation at general practices (GPs) in England, Australia, Norway and the Netherlands and to compare these networks in terms of seven previously published factors that support the successful implementation, sustainability and scale-up of innovations. Methods: The value networks were described based on formal guidelines and standards published by the respective governments, organizational bodies and affiliates. The value network of each country was validated by at least two relevant stakeholders from the respective country. Results: The analysis revealed that the biggest challenge for countries with low POCT uptake was the lack of effective communication between the several organizations involved with POCT as well as the high workload for GPs aiming to implement POCT. It is observed that countries with a single national authority responsible for POCT have a better uptake as they can govern the task of POCT roll-out and management and reduce the workload for GPs by assisting with set-up, quality control, training and support. Conclusion: Setting up a single national authority may be an effective step towards realizing the full benefits of POCT. Although it is possible for day-to-day operations to fall under the responsibility of the GP, this is only feasible if support and guidance are readily available to ensure that the workload associated with POCT is limited and as low as possible.