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Certification of Markets, Markets of Certificates: Tracing Sustainability in Global Agro-Food Value Chains

Author

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  • Arthur P. J. Mol

    (Environmental Policy Group, Wageningen University, P.O. Box 8130, Wageningen 6700 EW, The Netherlands)

  • Peter Oosterveer

    (Environmental Policy Group, Wageningen University, P.O. Box 8130, Wageningen 6700 EW, The Netherlands)

Abstract

There is a blossoming of voluntary certification initiatives for sustainable agro-food products and production processes. With these certification initiatives come traceability in supply chains, to guarantee the sustainability of the products consumed. No systematic analysis exists of traceability systems for sustainability in agro-food supply chains. Hence, the purpose of this article is to analyze the prevalence of four different traceability systems to guarantee sustainability; to identify the factors that determine the kind of traceability systems applied in particular supply chains; and to assess what the emergence of economic and market logics in traceability mean for sustainability. Two conclusions are drawn. Globalizing markets for sustainable agro-food products induces the emergence of book-and-claim traceability systems, but the other three systems (identity preservation, segregation and mass balance) will continue to exist as different factors drive traceability requirements in different supply chains. Secondly, traceability itself is becoming a market driven by economic and market logics, and this may have consequences for sustainability in agro-food supply chains in the future.

Suggested Citation

  • Arthur P. J. Mol & Peter Oosterveer, 2015. "Certification of Markets, Markets of Certificates: Tracing Sustainability in Global Agro-Food Value Chains," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(9), pages 1-21, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:7:y:2015:i:9:p:12258-12278:d:55380
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    15. de Olde, Evelien M. & Valentinov, Vladislav, 2019. "The moral complexity of agriculture: A challenge for corporate social responsibility," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 32(3), pages 413-430.
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    17. Kira J.M. Matus & Michael Veale, 2022. "Certification systems for machine learning: Lessons from sustainability," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(1), pages 177-196, January.

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