Innovation potential oforganic and agro-ecologicalfood and farming

Krijn J. Poppe

My introduction

Co-chair Strategic Working Group AKIS (Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems)

of the EU SCAR (Standing Committee on Agricultural Research)

Economist and Research Manager at LEI Wageningen UR

With a link to organic farming•Former member non-executive board of Nautilus, an organic coop.•Currently board member of SKAL, the Dutch organic inspection body

A recent experience in the fieldBionica – phytophtora resistant potato

Developed and breeded by Mr. Niek Vos, Kraggenburg, NL

Based on search for wild resistant varieties by Wageningen academics in the Andes and basic breeding work (35 years ago)

This year 500+ tons are grown

However:•Tubers have red spots due to wild variety: will this sell?•White flesh potatoes don’t sell well in the NL, export needed•Critical views by plant breeders who think that just one resistance is a bridge for the virus to damage varieties with several resistances (created by Cisgeneses). And Bionica was created with the classic biotech.

My reflection on this field trip

• Innovation can take a long time• There is a useful collaboration in innovation between

academics, breeding companies and farmers• Technical innovations need to go hand in hand with

marketing innovations: involve retail and consumer• Social innovation is needed to solve more complex issues

as the co-existence between organic and e.g. cisgeneses

Need for innovation

• How to feed 9 billion in 2050 in a sustainable way• Economic crisis and the need for innovation• Agriculture and food industry as an attractive sector to

invest in:• Good returns expected• Sustainability problems have to be solved• Not much risk that the industry will leave the region

• Reflected in policy measures, like EIP - including Horizon2020 and the renewed CAP

EU market for research and innovation..

• Research funds at national level are decreasing, in EU increasing, companies (and even farmers) more international oriented, large spill-overs >> EU collaboration needed

• Cross-border collaboration in research could benefit from harmonisation of rules and procedures for commissioning research, to help to create to a more integrated ‘market’ for research.

That does not mean that national or regional authorities should give up their strategy and agenda setting processes: but could adopt such procedures that research institutes could easier match national and international funds for relevant topics.

Innovation is a broad concept

• The implementation of a new or significantly improved product (good or service), or process, a new marketing method, or a new organisational method in business practices, workplace organisation or external relations. [source: OECD]

• Also the public sector can innovate ! (and public aspects of agriculture)

Social Innovation

‒ The concept of social innovation originates in critiques of traditional innovation theory. By calling for social innovation, new theories point at the need to take the social mechanisms of innovation into account (social mechanisms of innovation)

‒ In the context of rural development, social innovation refers to the (social) objectives of innovation – that is those changes in the social fabric of rural societies, that are perceived as necessary and desirable in order to strengthening rural societies and addressing the sustainability challenge (social inclusion / equity: the innovation of society as well as the social responsibility of innovations)

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The agro-innovation system and theory

• Innovation happens in a social system: “an institutional clustering of practices among the participants (not necessarily implying consensus)” (Anthony Giddens)

• Long-term infrastructural investment in ‘mental capital’ and its improvement is crucial for successful economic development and for competitive trade performance (Chris Freeman for OECD, quoting List, Keynes, and investigating historical cases in Europe and Asia)

• ‘Coupling mechanisms’ between the education system, scientific institutions, R&D facilities, production and markets have been an important aspect of the institutional changes introduced in successful ‘overtaking’ countries. (Freeman)

Knowledge & Innovation System: 7 functions

1. Knowledge development and diffusion2. Influence on direction of search and identification of

opportunities3. Entrepreneurial experimentation and management of

risk and uncertainty4. Market formation5. Resource mobilisation6. Legitimation7. Development of positive externalities

(c) M. Hekkert et al.

Innovation by interaction in networks

• Innovation as a process has strong learning aspects: learn how to do new things, bottom-up.• Alternative: force (or pay for) quality standards, mandates

• Thematically-focused learning networks of different actors can help.

• Generating learning and innovation through interactions between the involved actors. • participation for all in the planning of work and experiments,

their execution up until the dissemination of results and the demonstration phase

• Members can include farmers, extension workers, food industry, researchers, government and ngo representatives and other stakeholders.

Different objectives, methods, and public roles

Science versus Innovation driven research

Aspect Science driven research Innovation driven research

Incentive to program a topic

Emerging science that can contribute to solving a societal issue (or a scientific question)

An issue / problem in society that can be solved by new research, or a new idea to solve an existing issue

Participation of users In demonstration phase / via research dissemination

In agenda setting, defining the problem and during the research process

Quality criteria Scientific quality Relevance (for the sector or a region)

Focus Research organisations Networks of producers and users of knowledge

Diffusion model Linear model System (network) approachType of government policy Science / Research Policy Innovation Policy

Economic line of thinking Macro-economics Systems of innovation

Type of research

Interdisciplinary with absorption capacity in AKIS (to work with material science, ICT, chemistry etc.).

Transdisciplinary and translational with close interactions.

NGOs

ResearchEducation

Cons

umer

sRe

taile

rs

Food processors

Extension

Ag.

press

Farmers

NGOs

ResearchEducation

Cons

umer

sRe

taile

rs

Food processors

Extension

Ag.

press

Farmers

Member states

NGOs

ResearchEducation

Cons

umer

sRe

taile

rs

Food processors

Extension

Ag.

press

Farmers

Member states

EIP-Agri’s Operational

Groups

Interactive innovation and transdisciplinary research

Large pool of OGs

Many Networks

OperationalGroup

Thematic Network Multi-stakeholder Research Project

Farmers For replication and up-scaling:•End user material•Identify blockades•Research agenda

Transdisciplinary research:Operational Groups as cases and co-innovatorsNGO

Food company

Researcher

SeveralProjects

Practical tips and further implications

• How can a researcher find other stakeholders ?• Many do have contacts in their region with farmers,

extensionists, food companies• Many have international contacts with other researchers

(that have local contacts)‒ Search LinkedIn, join Eur. Assocations

• And ICT is at your disposal...• And how about my publication and citation indices ?

• Review papers and transdisciplinary research can be published (be creative !)

• Incentives on excellence should be complemented by indicators for relevance and impact

Multi-actor innovation benefits from ICTSoftware type Tools evaluated Successful examples

Knowledge portals (KP) Search engines: Google, YahooSlide and document sharing: SlideshareVideo and photo sharing: YouTube, Flickr

VOA3R, eXtension, Chil

E-document management systems ( E-MS)

Digital libraries: Groen Kennisnet in NL, Organic Eprints

Organic Eprints, Agriwebinar

Data Warehouse (DW) Eurostat, FADN FADNGroupware (GW) Wikipedia, Yammer,

CrowdsourcingBritish Farming Forum, Lego Cuusoo, Climate CoLab, P&G Connect+Develop, Betacup Challenge

Community of practice (CoP) ResearchGate, Erfaland Disease surveillance and warning systems, IDRAMAP

Social communities of interest (SCI)

Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, Ning, Quora

AgTalk+, E-Agriculture, Jeunes-agricultuers, Rede Inovar

Individual communities of interest (ICI)

Wordpress, Twitter, Blogs AG Chat

Special attention is needed to incentivize research to be responsive to the needs of innovation processes

National and regional governments can stimulate innovationby implementing the EIP. This should be translated in an instrument portfolio that: • Gives incentives for research, development and innovation;• Stimulates knowledge exchange, adoption of innovation, technical application in the production process;• Supports the activities of facilitators, innovation brokers and tutoring paths for farmers to implement innovations;• Value the input and knowledge of farmers;• Supports operational groups also to develop cross-border interactions;• Invests in AKIS-subsystems that have been underdeveloped in the specific national or regional situation.

Thank you for your attention

krijn.poppe@wur.nl

www.lei.wur.nl

References•Reflection paper AKIS 1•Orientation paper AKIS 2•Summarizing powerpoint presentation available on SlideShare