Political Economy of Transnational Food Chains

Owner	Bachelor Future Planet Studies
Coordinator	dr. R.J. Pistorius
Part of	Exchange Programme Faculty of Science, specialisation BSc Future Planet Studies, year 1Bachelor Future Planet Studies, major Future Society, year 2

Course manual 2021/2022

Course content

This course allows students to generate a better understanding of the world food chains through the lens of political and economic structures supporting contemporary transnational food chains.

Students are introduced to the contemporary organization and regulation of transnational food production, provision and consumption. Key determinants of the shifting organization and coherence of food chains will be discussed, such as dominant narratives about food trade and the concept of competitive advantage. We will also discuss the growing concentration and specialization in food production, the role of international regulation, the impact of new technologies on food production, as well as climate change.

Next, we will study how transnational food production, provision and consumption can be understood in terms of 'global food and/or value chains'. These help us to frame unfamiliar social-political and ecological (climatic) dilemmas and challenges related to the coordination or governance of transnational organization of food production. Think of social- economic and political dilemmas and challenges such as 'land-grabbing', the growing physical and psychological alienation between consumers and producers, growing concerns related to human health and food safety. 

In the final part of the course students will investigate case-wise what hinders and what can support sustainability within existing transnational food chains. Cases will focus on local dynamics in food production; alternative (transnational) production and distribution networks; new consumer awareness; alternative regulatory frameworks and sustainable technologies.

Study materials

Literature

• Literature in Canvas. 

Syllabus

• Literature in Syllabus

Objectives

• Students are able to understand and apply basic concepts in the contemporary transnational organization, trade and consumption of food production and provision.
• Students are able to investigate recent political and economic shifts in food production and provision associated with globalization, regionalization, localization and specialization.
• Students are able to analyse new global-local dynamics associated with the increasing consumer demand for and promotion of food produced sustainably.
• Students are able to understand and apply two research methods of (a) Food System Approach (FSA) and (b) concepts of ‘coordination’ to analyze the political economy and governance of food chains and sustainable adjustments to those.
• Students are able to critically analyse and compare scientific literature and media expressions (journals, internet footage, websites) on organization, trade and consumption of food production and provision.

Teaching methods

• Lecture
• Seminar
• Working independently on e.g. a project or thesis
• Supervision/feedback meeting

First, in Lectures 1 we will set out a conceptual framework to help understand the political economy of global food chains. What is 'Political Economy'?, What is a 'Food Chain'?, What is meant by the 'Global Food System'? What is a multinational- and what a transnational company?

In lecture 2 we zoom in on food trade on the basis of Jennifer Clapp's paper "Food security and international trade" in which she juxtaposes to two narratives about trade ("trade as a threat" or "trade as an opportunity"). We will also go a little back in history and explore the origins of these narratives.

In lectures 3 and 4 will offer information on the origin, workings and ideas behind Global food (value) chains. These will help students to map global structures in food trade, provision and consumption and detect possible inroads per chain-element for desired structural change (such as poverty alleviation or sustainable production).   In doing so we will  analyze 'agro-industry' in terms of its economic and political structure: where is the money earned?, by whom?, who decides? 

In Lecture 5 the knowledge generated in the previous 4 lectures will be applied to one or two case studies.

Individual assignment: The Individual Assignment (Paper on the political economy of agriculture) allows you to display your ability to apply the main  concepts and theories as discussed in the lectures  to a self-chosen issue. 

Group assignments: You will work in small teams of 4-5 per working sub-group (S1-5) which requires a dedicated and well managed division of labor.  There are 4 working groups, each divided into 5 sub-groups. We will work in 3 consecutive working-group sessions where you will get the full support of 2 excellent assistant teachers: Jordy Willems and Misha Velthuis (and myself as a back-bencher). Consider these meetings as scientific 'staff' meetings - every question is possible provided it contributes to your output, and is well prepared. You are jointly responsible for the Assignments, except for the personal reflection (Assignment IV). 

Learning activities

Attendance

Programme's requirements concerning attendance (OER-B):

• Participation in fieldwork is compulsory and cannot be replaced by assignments or other courses.
• In case of practical sessions, the student is obliged to attend at least of 90% of the sessions and to prepare himself adequately, unless indicated otherwise in the course manual. In case the student attends less than 90%, the practical sessions should be redone entirely.
• In case of tutorials/seminars with assignments, the student is obliged to attend at least 7 out of 8 seminars and to prepare thoroughly for these meetings, unless indicated otherwise in the course manual. If the course has more than 8 seminars, the student can miss up to 1 extra meeting for every (part of) 8 tutorials/seminars. If the students attends less than the mandatory tutorials/seminars, the course cannot be completed.

Additional requirements for this course:

Attendance during tutorials is mandatory. Attendance of the lectures is not. You are allowed to miss one tutorial, provided you announce your absence to one of the teaching assistants (Willems and Velthuis) 24 hours before.

Attendance during lectures is not obligatory.

 

 

Assessment

Item and weight	Details
Final grade

The assessment of the course is structured around Group assignments  (Assignments 2 (20%) and 3 (40%) - together 60%) and an Individual assignment 1 (Paper on the political economy of agriculture, 40%).

There are five working groups (S1-5)

‘Feed-back’ implies that sub-groups will be invited in timeslots of 20 minutes per slot: during the hours reserved for working groups (‘werkcolleges’). There will be no plenary working group sessions. The sub-group sessions (no grade) are to help you further in completing the assignments: sharing of ideas, discussing intermediate output, discussing sub-group-interaction, asking questions on the focus of the lecture series etc., all are welcome. A good preparation for a working group session is mandatory and may consist of:

(a) a brief summary of the material collected, written, planned – you may send this on beforehand to save time;

(b) a consistent series of questions for the teacher; (c) a planning.

Sending in materials for discussion to the teacher should take place 48 hours on beforehand. Brief e-mail feedback can be obtained (although not as a replacement of the live feed-back session), but should be confined to a ‘reasonable amount’ of mails.

Assessment diagram

Leerdoel:	Assignment I	Assignment II:	Assignment III:
#1.		Yes	Yes
#2.	Yes	Yes	Yes
#3.	Yes	Yes	Yes
#4.			Yes
#5.			Yes

Students that were enrolled in the course in previous years

n/a

Inspection of assessed work

Group composition made available via Canvas by Wednesday 4 November, 23.59.

 

Assignment 1 (the individual essay) to be a submitted via Canvas by 24 November, 23.59.

Assignment 2 (the fact sheet) to be a submitted by any group member via Canvas by  30 November, 23.59.

Assignment 3 Joint paper on food chain analysis including policy recommendations by Tuesday December 22, 23.59

Assignment 4 Individual reflection to be a submitted via Canvas by 23 December, 23.59. 

E-mail feedback can be obtained as well, but should be confined to a ‘reasonable amount’, to be determined by the assistant teachers.

 The assessment of the course is structured around Group assignments  (Assignments 2 (20%) and 3 (40%) - together 60%) and an Individual Assignment 1 (Paper on the political economy of agriculture, 40%).

There are five working groups (S1-5)

Assignments

 

 INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT (1) Individual essay on political economy of agriculture

Word count: 1200 (10% margin)

Weight: 40% overall grade

Deadline: WEN 24 Nov 2021, 23.59 hours

Submission through Canvas.

This assignment will be explained in working group session No. 2. 

Goal: This assignment requires you to mobilize various concepts as taught in Lectures 1 and to explain why change is occurring or not occurring in a self-chosen food issue. Food issues may relate to sustainability, food security, food regulation, poverty, resource depletion, etc.

Instruction: In week 1 and 2 we treated core concepts (Political Economy, Globalization, Food System, etc.) and two international and global food narratives about global agricultural trade as described in Jennifer Clapp's "Food security and international trade".

In this essay you are asked to pick one of Clapp’s two narratives ("trade as a threat" or "trade as an opportunity"), get more acquainted with it (e.g. by reading some of the extra suggested readings), and apply it to a food issue of your choice by using several core concepts as treated in Lectures 1 and 2 and the associated literature.

In Canvas you will find links to example papers by previous students. 

Although we suggest you use the (basic categorization of the) text of Jennifer Clap as a starting point, your score for this assignments also depends on your use of the concepts as treated in Lectures 1 and 2  (NB one of first sheets of these lectures indicates the concepts treated during the lecture).

• Introduction (300 words):
• Shortly introduce your self-chosen food issue. What are the trends? E.g. in terms of (share of total) trade flows? In terms of prices?
• Connect the introduction to your basic focus: are you highlighting threats or opportunities?
• Threat or opportunity (600 words)
• Explain on the basis of Jennifer Clapp's "Food security and international trade" (required reading of week 2 as well as one or more concepts and theories as treated in Lectures 1 and 2 and the associated literature, why your issue reflects a threat or opportunity.
• Explain how the chosen narrative, theory or concept(s) helps you/us to understand the dynamics of your food issue.
• Conclusion (100 words)
• Succinctly repeat your most important arguments.

 

Submission: On Canvas

General Requirements: Each assignment should have the student’s name and student number, a title, and a list of references in APA- or Harvard-style. Assignments not written in correct English or Dutch run the risk of not being graded and/or to have points deducted because of language mistakes. 

Evaluation: This second assignment accounts for 40% of the final grade for the whole course. Handing in an incomplete assignment or no assignment at all will result in a ‘1’. Failing to submit it on time, results in a deduction of points. Students receive brief written feedback on this assignment via Canvas.

Grading rubric

Criteria	Max ratings
Structure	1 pts
Depth	4 pts
Case study	4 pts
Argument	1 pts

 

 

=====================================================================================================

 

GROUP ASSIGNMENT (2) Fact Sheet

Word count: 1000 (10% margin)

Weight: 20% overall grade

Deadline: TUE 30 November, 23:59

Submission by a designated group member via Canvas.

 

Introduction

A fact sheet, also referred to as information sheet or briefing note (but not a full policy brief) is a short paper that quickly and effectively informs a senior decision-maker about an issue. Fact sheets are typically written for senior-level decision-makers who:

• have to keep track of many, often unrelated, issues;
• may not be familiar with the issues and may not have any related background;
• for whatever reason, cannot spend time doing their own research;
• need a capsule version of the key facts and considerations about an issue.

Fact sheets usually deal with "issues"—subjects of debate. But fact sheets are also prepared for any topic a senior decision-maker needs to be informed about: a situation, a report, an action by another political actor—in fact, anything that a political actor needs to deals with.

Note:

This fact sheet is a stepping stone for Group Assignment 3.

In Canvas you will find links to example Facts Sheets by previous students. 

 

The Assignment

Imagine you are putting together a fact sheet for your boss, on an issue within your chosen food issue. You get to decide who your boss is: she could be a Minister, a European Commissioner, a Chief Executive Officer of a multinational corporation, or the Director of an international NGO. You also have to decide why your boss needs this factsheet. It can be a call for attention for a looming crisis related to one of the food items to which she urgently needs to respond, or a plea for a more sustainable use of the food item of your choice. Before you start writing, be sure you are clear about the points you will cover and how you will structure your information.

The 2-page fact sheet (max 700 words) should start by stating its purpose and addressee, and determine on the basis of Figure 1 (Berkum, S. et al. 2018) p. 10 and further) what areas in the Food System Map are involved, and why they are relevant (ppt drawn from lecture 3) . To understand the design and workings of the Food System Map you are requested to read Chapter 4 ‘Mapping the Food System’, In: Berkum, S. van, Dengerink, J. and Ruben, R., (2018). The food systems approach: sustainable solutions for a sufficient supply of healthy food. Wageningen, Wageningen Economic Research, Memorandum 2018-064. pp 10-16. This report is also your read for Lecture 3 on 16 November.

In addition to the actual factsheet, you should prepare a 1-page (max 300 words) justification, which explains why you think the information you presented is useful to your boss, what choices you made, what sources you used, and how you dealt with the trade-off between brevity and scientific accuracy.

Example of fact sheet issue:

Farmers in various EU countries are complaining about the quality of the Dutch onion species. They seem much more vulnerable to black mould than in previous years. The French Ministry has asked the EU to step-up national phytosanitary inspections of all Dutch onions at the French borders in spite of the free internal market regulations. Dutch onion exports (95% of total production) will be affected in various ways...

 

Grading rubric

Criteria	Max ratings
Structure	1 pts
Depth	4 pts
Case study	4 pts
Argument	1 pts

 

 =========================================================================================

Assignment 3:

(3A) Joint paper on food chain analysis including policy recommendations

OR 

(3B) A joint dissemination product as a follow-up of your Fact Sheet

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

GROUP ASSIGNMENT (3A) Joint paper on food chain analysis including policy recommendations

Word count: 4500 (10% margin)

Weight: 40% overall grade

Deadline: WED 22 December 23.59

Submission by a designated group member via Canvas.

Feedback

• As with Assignment 1 and 2, the role of the assistant teachers and the lecturer is to entice you to strike a balance between the information offered through the reading list and the lectures. At the same time deviating from these sources is encouraged as far as it further enhances the quality of the product as formulated in the grading criteria below.
• Brief e-mail feedback can be obtained from the assistant teachers, but should be confined to a ‘reasonable amount’ of mails.

Introduction

Your joint Fact Sheet Assignment, and the brief feedback on it, has probably caused you to become aware of unanswered questions relating to your theme. Let us assume your boss has become convinced of the urgency of the food issue you raised in the Fact Sheet. She is convinced that further broader research should be initiated. She appoints you and your team to draft a brief paper closing with at least three policy recommendations.

For this task, being Assignment 3, you need: (a) to think through how to go from the issue raised by our real-world observations to a research question and proposal that lend to being answered through academically sound methods and (b) with reference to a specific theory or concept within a theory as outlined in your Individual Essay (Assignment II).

The Assignment

The paper should consist of:

• An introduction: what is the background of this research paper? You obviously can draw from the Fact Sheet but it is useful to add arguments why (your boss is convinced) it is necessary to investigate the issue in depth.
• A brief literature review: what existing knowledge is there on this phenomenon, where can it be found? Can you discern a literature gap?
• And what do we not know yet, that your research design will tackle? There might be other ways to underline the relevance of your research, e.g., the ambition to contribute to a more sustainable production of a specific food item. Here again your joint Fact Sheet will be of use. It is advisable to frame your paper in terms of a Food Chain analysis as was done in the Fact Sheet. Exceptions are possible though, but please consult your tutor.
• An over-arching research question, possibly with some sub-questions, possibly with hypotheses. This research question should go beyond the ‘problem’ stated in the Fact Sheet (e.g. The market share of fair-trade chocolate bars is stagnating). That is: it should invite to a structured investigation of that problem (e.g. Which (f)actors in the chocolate chain contribute to the stagnating market share of fair-trade chocolate in Country?)
• An argumentation of the research method of your choice. You may draw from the chain analyses offered in Lecture 3 and 4. Please indicate why and how such approach is suitable, what these methods’ drawbacks are, and a discussion of the sources that would be used to generate a complete picture of (the workings of) the chain/problem approach chosen. ( e.g. you need to do a Global chocolate Value Chain analysis to analyse the stagnating market share of fair-trade chocolate in Country)
• Indicate from what narrative (e.g., 'trade as an opportunity', vs 'trade as a threat' as treated in Lecture 3), and / or the main concepts as treated in lectures 1- 4 (see first pages of each lecture for the main concepts treated) treated in Lectures 1 and 2) are most relevant for answering your research question and explain why. You may use material from one or more of the group members' individual essay(s) (Assignment 1) or a group Fact Sheet (Assignment 2).
• Indicate who decides, and what are the power relations within the Global (agricultural) Value Chain (GVC, as discussed in lecture 3 and 4) of your research subject (food item). How are these power relations expressed in your Chain (e.g., by means of a particular chain relation (modular, captive etc.) as described in the literature for week 3 on page 12 and 23 and various cases from page 25 (Basic et al. (2014) Who's got the power? Tackling imbalances in global agricultural supply chains.) Answer do these imbalances hinder or perhaps help to solve the problem discussed in your research question. (e.g. public pressure on key chocolate processors may mitigate current 'captive' chain relations).  
• Optional: Explore what changes in your Global (agricultural) Value Chain (GVC) (see also lecture 4) would further be required to solve the problem discussed in your research question. Perhaps you will experience that a GVC analysis does not (fully) suffice to answer your research question. In such case (this is optional) you may investigate what additional social and environmental elements of “The Food Systems Approach” (see Berkum, et al. (2018) as discussed in lecture 3 and 4 can incorporated in your analysis - and why.
• The paper should close with a brief conclusion (300 words max) and a brief section (max 200 words) with at least three policy recommendations allowing your boss to take action in the near future.
• The paper should be 4500 words with a 10% margin excluding appendixes and literature list.

 

Grading rubric

Criteria	Max ratings
Structure	1 pts
Depth	4 pts
Case study	3 pts
Argument	1 pts
Writing	1 pts

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

GROUP ASSIGNMENT (3B) A joint dissemination product as a follow-up of your Fact Sheet

Weight: 40% overall grade

Deadline: WED 22 December 23.59

Submission by a designated group member via Canvas.

Feedback

• As with Assignment 1 and 2, the role of the assistant teachers and the lecturer is to entice you to strike a balance between the information offered through the reading list and the lectures. At the same time deviating from these sources is encouraged as far as it further enhances the quality of the product as formulated in the grading criteria below.
• Brief e-mail feedback can be obtained from the assistant teachers, but should be confined to a ‘reasonable amount’ of mails.

Introduction

Let us again assume your boss has become convinced of the urgency of the food issue you raised in Fact Sheet Assignment III. She now plans to lobby for the cause raised in your Fact Sheet. She appoints you and your team to draft a dissemination product which will convince friends and foes of the urgency of the matter. In fact, this Assignment is an elaboration of the Fact Sheet with the important difference that it contains sufficient data and arguments to convince even the most ardent sceptic. 

The Assignment

In this assignment, you will offer a substantive message within the theme of your choice, informed by academic empirical and theoretical insights, but targeted at a specific audience outside of the university (citizens, policy-makers, other professionals). The product may take the form of a policy brief, an NGO campaign plan, a consultancy report to a company, a podcast or a video-clip. Make sure the subject falls within the conceptual scope of the course – the political economy of transnational food chains.

Think about what you are trying to achieve, getting an issue on the agenda or influencing a particular group’s opinion or behaviour, and adjust your format and language accordingly. You can make use of the Fact Sheet, but only use it in so far as it fits your message and format. You are encouraged to package your product creatively, using ICT and/or artistic expression, keeping in mind the audience targeted.

Before choosing your dissemination product, think through the following questions:

• What is the key message you would like to convey?
• What different audiences could there be for your message, and which group do you want to prioritize?
• What is the conceptual vantage point of your message. You use a narrative (e.g. 'trade as an opportunity', vs 'trade as a threat' as treated in Lecture 3), or  a key concept (the ones treated in Lectures 1 - 4, see for list of key concepts the first page of each lecture). You may use material from one or more of the group members' individual essay(s) (Assignment 1) or Fact Sheet (Assignment 2). This section should contain at least 1000 words. 
• Why should your audience know what you have to say? What (if anything) should they do with the information?
• What are the characteristics of your audience ? What means of communication do they use, what kinds of decisions do they get to make, what kinds of arguments appeal to them?
• What is the customary and appropriate style (language, lay-out, length, visuals) for the product you have chosen?
• How do you balance between fact and claim? What do you ‘show’ to the audience and what is it that you suggest when you use images or text?
• What is your personal point of view and to what extent does it interfere with your selection of information? What is included and what is excluded?

Suggestions:

Think of how to visualize and/or present a merely abstract theme as the political economy of transnational food chains.

In terms of quantity this assignment will be judged on the basis of the personal assessment of the grading teacher. There are a few rules of thumb you may use though: a brief documentary may be about 10-15 minutes. A podcast about 20 minutes. Please don't underestimate the amount of time required to transfer your knowledge into multimedia. 

All sources used should be mentioned separately in a separate document (Word), including most relevant URLs, source persons, and grey literature.

Make sure you comply to copy-right rules when you plan to use the product for further disseminated outside this course.

Grading rubric

Criteria	Max ratings
Structure	1 pts
Depth	4 pts
Case study	3 pts
Argument	1 pts
Visual presentation	1 pts

 

===================================================================================================

Final grade, resit and suspension

Finished papers resulting from Assignment 3 are to be submitted at 21 December 2021 Final Grades are available at January 15 2021: 23:59 latest.

Grades below 5.5 require a resit of all members of the sub-group. 

The suspension period is 3 weeks (21 days, which is 4 February 2022), starting from the date of reception of the final grade (15 January 2022). The resit applies to all members of the sub-group delivering the finalized paper. Suspended joint papers are to be delivered through Canvas.  

Grading of suspended papers will be max 7 days. Hence reception of final grade of suspended papers is 11 February 2022. 

In case of failing the resit of Assignment 3, the course must be re-entered next year. Assignments 1 and 2 can be taken to the subsequent year only.

 

 ======================================================================================

INDIVIDUAL Assignment (4) - Individual Reflection (deadline 23 December) (0.5 bonus option)

You are asked to write and upload an individual reflection on the learning process and quality of collaboration after submitting your assignments. The individual reflections are read, but not graded.

They serve two purposes.

First, the reflection will provide an opportunity for you to signal to your teacher whether there were obstacles or mitigating circumstances that impeded the work on the group assignments, but that you could not indicate in the assignment itself, such as for instance the illness or dropping out of one of your group members. This is also the space for you to let us know if any of the group members were not pulling their weight, and letting others do all the work. Your group assignments will receive a collective grade and feedback, but the grade can be adjusted downwards for individuals in case of clear signs of free-riding behaviour, as indicated by all other members of the group. It can also be adjusted upwards for individuals who are unanimously pointed out as having done significantly more or better work than everyone else.

Beyond giving teachers an insight into obstacles and group dynamics, the individual reflection is also an important tool for yourself. Pedagogical studies (McCrindle and Christensen, Learning and Instruction, 1995; Sumsion and Fleet, Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 1996; Wagenaar, Teaching Sociology, 1984) have shown that explicit written reflection on the learning process gives students insight into their cognitive strategies, as well as helping them retain what they have learnt. In other words, your individual reflection will help you to better remember both your substantive learning about Transnational Politics and your experiences with collaborative work.

The individual reflection can be brief, 300 to 400 words.

0.5 penalty or bonus point: Not submitting an individual reflection may result in a deduction of max 0.5 grade point from your final grade (of the entire module). At the same time the reflection may raise your final grade with max 0.5 grade point in case you can convincingly explain why the group process(es) in Assignment II (Fact Sheet) and IV A/B (Paper) suppressed your weighted average in a manner beyond your control or responsibility.

Submission

Individual submission of Assignment 4 via Canvas by 23 December, 23.59.

Fraud and plagiarism

The 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' applies to this course. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board of the programme will be informed. For the 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' see: www.student.uva.nl

Course structure

Timetable

The schedule for this course is published on DataNose.

Honours information

n/a

Additional information

All study materials (syllabus/literature) are provided through Canvas. 

Last year's course evaluation

n/a

Contact information

Coordinator

• dr. R.J. Pistorius

M. Velthuis (m.velthuis@uva.nl)

J. Willems (j.willems2@uva.nl)