Doctoral Dissertation Research: A Club Apple Society: What this New Economic Organization Says About The Biology of Markets

博士论文研究：苹果俱乐部协会：这个新经济组织对市场生物学的看法

• 批准号: 1230494
• 负责人: Michael Bell
• 金额: $ 1.55万
• 依托单位: University of Wisconsin-Madison
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2012-08-15 至 2013-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1230494&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Club; Apple

New developments in the biological sciences and in marketing are transforming relationships between people and plants. Although plants have long been bred and patented, and vertically integrated science-economic systems have grown in recent years, new forms of economic organization are reshaping these relationships. Increasingly, small-scale producers are re-organizing biological and economic systems to patent and protect plant varieties and manage their economic distribution. Through a study of patented apple varieties called club apples, this project examines the causes and dynamics of this new set of economic and biological arrangements. Club apples are often developed by breeders and managed by a group of growers, and associated with planned marketing strategies and licenses that restrict the number of trees that can be planted. By considering how and why club apples have become popular among growers, and with what consequences for plants and orchard economies, this study provides new knowledge about emergent economic-biological practices that may be increasingly common and standardized. Evidence is gathered through interviews with growers, breeders, processors and retailers, and through analysis of textual materials, such as patents and industry magazines, and observation of industry conferences. The broader theoretical importance of this study is its contribution to research on the institutionalization and deinstitutionalization of hybrid economic-science practices. Research findings are disseminated through conference presentations, academic journal publications, a dissertation, and a book, and on a blog, amazingapples.blogspot.com that is accessible to publics. Findings are also disseminated to club apple orchardists. This dissemination plan provides results of value to academic analysts of science and markets, while also engaging growers and a general consumer public in conversations about clubs and contemporary farming practices.

生物科学和营销中的新发展正在改变人与植物之间的关系。尽管植物长期以来已经繁殖和专利，并且近年来垂直综合的科学经济系统已经发展，但新形式的经济组织正在重塑这些关系。小型生产商越来越多地重新组织生物学和经济系统，以保护和保护植物品种并管理其经济分布。通过对获得专利的苹果苹果的专利品种的研究，该项目研究了这套新的经济和生物学安排的原因和动态。俱乐部苹果通常是由育种者开发的，由一群种植者管理，并与计划的营销策略和许可有关，这些策略和许可限制了可以种植的树木数量。通过考虑俱乐部苹果如何以及为什么在种植者中流行，以及对植物和果园经济的影响，这项研究提供了有关新兴经济生物学实践的新知识，这些实践可能越来越普遍且标准化。通过与种植者，育种者，加工商和零售商的访谈以及对文本材料（例如专利和行业杂志）的分析以及对行业会议的观察来收集证据。这项研究的更广泛的理论重要性在于它对有关混合经济科学实践的制度化和降低机构化的研究的贡献。研究发现是通过会议演讲，学术期刊出版物，论文和书籍传播的，以及在博客上，smakeapples.blogspot.com，公众可以访问。调查结果也被传播到苹果果园俱乐部。该传播计划为科学和市场的学术分析师提供了价值的结果，同时还吸引了种植者和一般消费者公众在有关俱乐部和当代农业实践的对话中。