Co-opetition, a stabilizing strategy in traditional sectors ? A case study of a label of origin : “Free-range poultry from Landes”[La coopetición, ¿una estrategia estabilizadora de los sectores tradicionales ? Una historia razonada de la indicación geográfica protegida “Aves de corral granjeras de las Landas”]

While co-opetition has been researched significantly in the technology sector, it is also present in many other sectors of activity where firms require access to complementary resources to remain competitive. This is the case in the agri-food business which provides the setting for the case study used in this article to investigate how actors in a specific food chain engage in co-opetition. Analysis of the collective process involved in obtaining the European food label of Protected Geographic Indication generates insight into the balancing of cooperation and competition. On-going tensions suggest limits to co-opetition that regularly threaten to undermine the co-operative aspect when the outcome of co-opetition restrains the competitive freedom of certain actors to a degree that is considered greater than the benefits its confers. Comparing the results of the case study to those obtained in the technology sector allow us to examine the extent to which co-opetition strategies can have a stabilizing effect on the competitive dynamics in a more traditional sector. Geographical maps and managerial tools