| Title |
From pioneering to organised business: the development of ecological farming in China |
| ID_Doc |
66035 |
| Authors |
Liu, PY; Ravenscroft, N; Ding, D; Li, DX |
| Title |
From pioneering to organised business: the development of ecological farming in China |
| Year |
2019 |
| Published |
Local Environment, 24.0, 6 |
| DOI |
10.1080/13549839.2019.1597032 |
| Abstract |
Small-scale ecological farming and their associated alternative food networks, are increasingly important in China, as a response to poor farm incomes and as a contribution to widespread concerns about environmental degradation and food safety. However, despite the enormous market potential and the notable success of some ventures, this type of farming remains at the margins, with many businesses struggling to develop beyond their start-up phase and consumers struggling to build confidence in the new produce and routes to market. Many of these farms display the classic elements of pioneer businesses, including high reliance on charismatic individuals, insecure land rights, high transaction and monitoring costs and fragile routes to market. Empirically, many of these businesses fail because they cannot grow out of the pioneer phase before the pioneer grows tired of the business. While this is a problem for all small businesses, it is particularly acute in business sectors like ecological farming in China, where there is little evidence of suitable and sustainable developmental models. Using Bernardus Lievegoed's work on organisational development applied to two case study farms, we suggest that there are Western developmental models that are applicable to small-scale ecological farming and that have the potential to offer insights into how this might be achieved with Chinese characteristics. We conclude by arguing that, Chinese ecological farms have to plan explicitly for a form of development that allows them to remain committed to their ideals while moving them away from dependence on charismatic people, family labour and volatile customer bases. |
| Author Keywords |
Ecological farms; organisation development; pioneer phase; integrated phase; China |
| Index Keywords |
Index Keywords |
| Document Type |
Other |
| Open Access |
Open Access |
| Source |
Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED); Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) |
| EID |
WOS:000464523600001 |
| WoS Category |
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology; Environmental Studies; Geography; Regional & Urban Planning; Urban Studies |
| Research Area |
Science & Technology - Other Topics; Environmental Sciences & Ecology; Geography; Public Administration; Urban Studies |
| PDF |
https://rau.repository.guildhe.ac.uk/id/eprint/16139/1/buisness%20organisation%20paper%20revised%20final.docx
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