5952: The organic food supply chain in relation to information management and the interaction between actors

Kottila, Marja-Riitta; Maijala, Adeline and Rönni, Päivi (2005) The organic food supply chain in relation to information management and the interaction between actors. Paper presented at Researching sustainable systems : first scientific conference of the International Society of Organic Agriculture Research (ISOFAR), held in cooperation with IFOAM and NASAA, Adelaide, South Australia, 21-23 September 2005, page pp. 378-381. International Society of Organic Agriculture Research (ISOFAR), Bonn; Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), Frick.

Summary

Conventional retailers play a significant role in selling organic food, and therefore, it is important to understand how the demand-supply chain of organic food works as an element of the conventional food system. The proportion of organic food in the conventional food chains is small, and this poses a great challenge to the performance of the chain. Surveys and case specific studies on consumers and supply chain actors indicate that the changes in the conventional food system have an impact on the organic chain. The main obstacles to the optimisation of the organic food chain include poor information management, insufficient communication with consumers, and the diverging objectives and needs of the actors of the chain.

Archive Staff Only: edit this record