From farm to table : uncovering narratives of agency and responsibility for change among actors along agri-food value chains in Germany
(2025) In Agriculture and Human Values 42(3). p.1805-1827- Abstract
Given the complex nature of agri-food value chains and related sustainability challenges, the question arises who has the agency and responsibility to address these challenges and facilitate systemic change. We address this question through a mixed method approach and examine experiences with agriculture among different actors along the agricultural value chains in Germany. Based on this, we explore how various actors make sense of current agri-food topics as well as of their perceived responsibility and agency to change practices. While our study shows weak signals for the favoring of collective and collaborative approaches to change, there is a dominant narrative of externalizing responsibility to other actors, mainly consumers, state... (More)
Given the complex nature of agri-food value chains and related sustainability challenges, the question arises who has the agency and responsibility to address these challenges and facilitate systemic change. We address this question through a mixed method approach and examine experiences with agriculture among different actors along the agricultural value chains in Germany. Based on this, we explore how various actors make sense of current agri-food topics as well as of their perceived responsibility and agency to change practices. While our study shows weak signals for the favoring of collective and collaborative approaches to change, there is a dominant narrative of externalizing responsibility to other actors, mainly consumers, state actors, and to a lesser extent farmers; upstream market actors such as retailers are barely mentioned, indicating a lack of awareness of the power dynamics within agri-food systems. We discuss how these findings can inform appropriate governance mechanisms at different levels and future research to address the prospective responsibility of value chain actors and power dynamics within agri-food transitions.
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- author
- Hector, Veronica ; Friedrich, Jonathan LU ; Schlaile, Michael P. ; Panagiotou, Anna and Bieling, Claudia
- organization
- publishing date
- 2025-09
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Agency, Agri-food systems, Discourse, Multi-actor approach, Responsibility
- in
- Agriculture and Human Values
- volume
- 42
- issue
- 3
- pages
- 23 pages
- publisher
- Springer Science and Business Media B.V.
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:105004896690
- ISSN
- 0889-048X
- DOI
- 10.1007/s10460-025-10732-1
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 4850c8d0-1f5e-4ce9-a1ae-0711098734ae
- date added to LUP
- 2025-09-18 13:25:58
- date last changed
- 2025-09-18 13:26:34
@article{4850c8d0-1f5e-4ce9-a1ae-0711098734ae,
abstract = {{<p>Given the complex nature of agri-food value chains and related sustainability challenges, the question arises who has the agency and responsibility to address these challenges and facilitate systemic change. We address this question through a mixed method approach and examine experiences with agriculture among different actors along the agricultural value chains in Germany. Based on this, we explore how various actors make sense of current agri-food topics as well as of their perceived responsibility and agency to change practices. While our study shows weak signals for the favoring of collective and collaborative approaches to change, there is a dominant narrative of externalizing responsibility to other actors, mainly consumers, state actors, and to a lesser extent farmers; upstream market actors such as retailers are barely mentioned, indicating a lack of awareness of the power dynamics within agri-food systems. We discuss how these findings can inform appropriate governance mechanisms at different levels and future research to address the prospective responsibility of value chain actors and power dynamics within agri-food transitions.</p>}},
author = {{Hector, Veronica and Friedrich, Jonathan and Schlaile, Michael P. and Panagiotou, Anna and Bieling, Claudia}},
issn = {{0889-048X}},
keywords = {{Agency; Agri-food systems; Discourse; Multi-actor approach; Responsibility}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{3}},
pages = {{1805--1827}},
publisher = {{Springer Science and Business Media B.V.}},
series = {{Agriculture and Human Values}},
title = {{From farm to table : uncovering narratives of agency and responsibility for change among actors along agri-food value chains in Germany}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10460-025-10732-1}},
doi = {{10.1007/s10460-025-10732-1}},
volume = {{42}},
year = {{2025}},
}