IMPRESA WP3: Case Study Report - Transition towards organic farming in the Camargue

Summary

In this report we assess the contribution, role, and impacts of the Science-Based Research and Innovation Program (ISRIP) on farmers’ transition to organic production in the Camargue. We have applied a qualitative method based on the Participatory Impact Pathway Analysis (PIPA) and complemented by other methods to adapt it to the requirements of an-ex-post evaluation (with Outcome Harvesting), to identify the role played by the different actors along the innovation pathway (with the Social Network Analysis), to validate the pathway links (with the Process tracing) and to identify the crucial components in the pathway (by asking counterfactual questions to stakeholders). We demonstrate that the research has played a limited role to support farmers’ transition to organic farming in the Camargue. Three main evidences were identified: (1) informal testing made by farmers on crop rotation were very important to help them to convert to organic farming; (2) economic factors were also important and even indispensable; and (3) the institutionalization of the supply chain for organic rice was seen as a crucial factor in the pathway.