Agri-Food Commodity Chains and Globalising Networks – Edited by C. Stringer and R. Le Heron
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the literature on nature and culture, landscape ecology, native versus exotic organisms, and sub- urban gardens as places where people create and recreate habitat. Urban geographers, planners and biogeogra- phers will find much of interest, but Backyard should be read by all Australians with a backyard and an interest in gardens. It will also be of interest to readers in other countries, especially the ‘new lands’ of the United States, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa that were settled and transformed by Europeans. It would be worthwhile to ascertain to what extent the obser- vations and ideas in Backyard are transferable to other areas. Recent research (Hall, 2007) has suggested that there are trends for suburban sections to have more built space and for people to work longer hours. The upshot is shrinking backyards, fewer trees, and more inside recreation. Back- yard presents a pervasive argument that these trends are to be regretted, and as such it merits a wide readership. Suburban backyards are complex spaces that represent cultural and eco- logical opportunities with respect to biodiversity futures, suburban landscape design, and sustain- able cities. REFERENCE Hall, T., 2007: Where Have All the Gardens Gone? An Inves- tigation into the Disappearance of Back Yards in the Newer Australian Suburb. Urban Research Programme Research Paper 13, Griffith University, Brisbane. Alexander Wearing University of Otago New Zealand Agri-Food Commodity Chains and Globalising Networks C. Stringer and R. Le Heron (eds), Ashgate Pub- lishing Limited, Aldershot, Hampshire, 2008, xiv + 244 pp, ISBN 978 0 7546 7336 1 (hardback), Stg£60.00. This book offers a comprehensive overview of recent methodological approaches and debates in agri-food commodity chain research. While the book will be of interest to those who study food economies, it also offers some considered and thought-provoking assertions that are likely to be of interest to the wider audience of economic and social geographers. This substantial book, containing eighteen chapters by 24 authors, is organised into four sections carefully structured to ensure the core themes and debates emerge and develop through the volume. The papers vary in quality almost as much as they do in subject matter and context. While the variety in subject and context is a strength of the book, some lower quality papers detract a little from what is otherwise a very sound publication. The following paragraphs provide a few comments on what I found to be the more interesting contributions. Chapter 2, by Charles Mather, explores the social and economic implications of upgrading in South Africa’s squid value chain. The chapter commences with a brief overview of previous scholarly research into ‘upgrading’. The author then outlines the history of upgrading in the squid industry and illustrates how the South African squid industry case does not ‘fit’ with the theoretically constructed chain governance cat- egories. Based on this finding, Mather empha- sises the importance of considering livelihoods and working conditions in commodity chain research. Chapter 4, by Jeffery Neilson and Bill Prit- chard, entitled ‘Big is not always better: global value chain restructuring and the crisis in south Indian tea estates’, provides a thoughtful explo- ration of four possible trajectories for South Indian tea production. Following an interesting overview of tea production and ownership in South India and the evolution of ‘estates’, the authors consider a number of probable future development options. In their quite short chapter, the authors highlight the importance of considering local and regional institutional environments in agri-food commodity chain research. I would recommend this chapter for, in particular, postgraduate research students as it is written in an accessible language, with the con- clusions clearly developed from a large empirical study. For those interested in post-structuralist interpretations of agricultural production and exchange, Chapter 9 offers a valuable per- spective. Written by Nicolas Lewis and entitled ‘Constructing economic objects of governance: the New Zealand wine industry’, the chapter draws on the case example of New Zealand’s wine industry and positions it as an analytical space in which to consider modes of governance. While personally I thought that the author was somewhat dismissive of the contribution of so-called ‘mainstream’ economic geography, the chapter does provide an interesting and useful analysis. Reviews 443 © 2010 The Authors Geographical Research © 2010 Institute of Australian Geographers
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Transcript of Agri-Food Commodity Chains and Globalising Networks – Edited by C. Stringer and R. Le Heron
the literature on nature and culture, landscapeecology, native versus exotic organisms, and sub-urban gardens as places where people create andrecreate habitat.
Urban geographers, planners and biogeogra-phers will find much of interest, but Backyardshould be read by all Australians with a backyardand an interest in gardens. It will also be ofinterest to readers in other countries, especiallythe ‘new lands’ of the United States, Canada,New Zealand and South Africa that were settledand transformed by Europeans. It would beworthwhile to ascertain to what extent the obser-vations and ideas in Backyard are transferable toother areas.
Recent research (Hall, 2007) has suggestedthat there are trends for suburban sections tohave more built space and for people to worklonger hours. The upshot is shrinking backyards,fewer trees, and more inside recreation. Back-yard presents a pervasive argument that thesetrends are to be regretted, and as such it meritsa wide readership. Suburban backyards arecomplex spaces that represent cultural and eco-logical opportunities with respect to biodiversityfutures, suburban landscape design, and sustain-able cities.
REFERENCEHall, T., 2007: Where Have All the Gardens Gone? An Inves-
tigation into the Disappearance of Back Yards in theNewer Australian Suburb. Urban Research ProgrammeResearch Paper 13, Griffith University, Brisbane.
Alexander WearingUniversity of Otago
New Zealand
Agri-Food Commodity Chains and GlobalisingNetworksC. Stringer and R. Le Heron (eds), Ashgate Pub-lishing Limited, Aldershot, Hampshire, 2008, xiv+ 244 pp, ISBN 978 0 7546 7336 1 (hardback),Stg£60.00.
This book offers a comprehensive overview ofrecent methodological approaches and debates inagri-food commodity chain research. While thebook will be of interest to those who study foodeconomies, it also offers some considered andthought-provoking assertions that are likely to beof interest to the wider audience of economic andsocial geographers.
This substantial book, containing eighteenchapters by 24 authors, is organised into four
sections carefully structured to ensure the corethemes and debates emerge and develop throughthe volume. The papers vary in quality almost asmuch as they do in subject matter and context.While the variety in subject and context is astrength of the book, some lower quality papersdetract a little from what is otherwise a verysound publication. The following paragraphsprovide a few comments on what I found to bethe more interesting contributions.
Chapter 2, by Charles Mather, explores thesocial and economic implications of upgrading inSouth Africa’s squid value chain. The chaptercommences with a brief overview of previousscholarly research into ‘upgrading’. The authorthen outlines the history of upgrading in thesquid industry and illustrates how the SouthAfrican squid industry case does not ‘fit’ with thetheoretically constructed chain governance cat-egories. Based on this finding, Mather empha-sises the importance of considering livelihoodsand working conditions in commodity chainresearch.
Chapter 4, by Jeffery Neilson and Bill Prit-chard, entitled ‘Big is not always better: globalvalue chain restructuring and the crisis in southIndian tea estates’, provides a thoughtful explo-ration of four possible trajectories for SouthIndian tea production. Following an interestingoverview of tea production and ownership inSouth India and the evolution of ‘estates’, theauthors consider a number of probable futuredevelopment options. In their quite shortchapter, the authors highlight the importanceof considering local and regional institutionalenvironments in agri-food commodity chainresearch. I would recommend this chapter for, inparticular, postgraduate research students as it iswritten in an accessible language, with the con-clusions clearly developed from a large empiricalstudy.
For those interested in post-structuralistinterpretations of agricultural production andexchange, Chapter 9 offers a valuable per-spective. Written by Nicolas Lewis and entitled‘Constructing economic objects of governance:the New Zealand wine industry’, the chapterdraws on the case example of New Zealand’swine industry and positions it as an analyticalspace in which to consider modes of governance.While personally I thought that the author wassomewhat dismissive of the contribution ofso-called ‘mainstream’ economic geography, thechapter does provide an interesting and usefulanalysis.
Reviews 443
© 2010 The AuthorsGeographical Research © 2010 Institute of Australian Geographers
Chapter 10, by Ilbery and Maye, moves thereader away from the New Zealand context tothat of the English/Scottish border. In an empiri-cally driven exploration of local food exchangesthe authors draw on the case studies of theScottish border county and the NorthumberlandCounty. Ilbery and Maye touch on themes of newregionalism and governance in their review oflocal food supply chains. This theoretical posi-tioning of their research ensures that it will be ofvalue to a wide audience.
Chapter 13, by Jerry Patchell, is entitled ‘Theregion as organisation: differentiation and collec-tivity in Bordeaux, Napa and Chianti Classico’.Patchell uses the three aforementioned casestudies to highlight differences in regionalorganisation and identity construction, suggest-ing these are shaped through employing notionsof collectivity and difference. Packed with data,this chapter explores the role of institutionalarrangements in regional identity. Patchell’swork could easily lend itself to a more lengthyconsideration of contemporary theories of newregionalism and governance.
The final three chapters of the book are not tobe missed. Chapter 16 by Michael Roche isentitled ‘The commodity chain at the periphery:the spar trade of northern New Zealand inthe early 19th Century’. Chapter 17 by VaughanWood is entitled ‘Akaroa cocksfoot: examiningthe supply chain of a defunct New Zealandagricultural export’. Chapter 18 by Eric Pawsondeals with ‘Biotic exchange in an imperialworld: developments in the grass seed trade’.Hidden at the back of this lengthy book, eachof these chapters provides richly detailedhistorical accounts of New Zealand exportcommodities.
Agri-Food Commodity Chains and Globalis-ing Networks makes a useful contribution toknowledge about agri-food networks. This book,however, should not simply be regarded as ofinterest to those studying agri-food networks orfood economies. A number of authors presentwell-developed and empirically grounded com-mentary on contemporary theoretical develop-ments in economic geography. Overall, thisbook is a good read and one that I would re-commend to postgraduate and early career aca-demics with research interests in economicgeography.
Amanda DaviesCurtin University of Technology
Australia
GenderHarriet Bradley, Polity Press, Cambridge, UK,2007, 224 pp, ISBN 978 0 7456 2376 4 (hard-back), Stg£45.00.
Gender has been a rather busy term lately. Theflurry of publications may make one cringe atthe thought of reading yet another book ongender – has not everything been said and doneabout gender and are we not living in a post-feminist world where men and women are livingin a gender-aware society or at least on the waytowards equality? This immensely readable bookby Harriet Bradley, however, superbly dispelsthese notions and takes us on a theoreticaljourney on gender in society. This theoreticaltext on sociological approaches to the majordebates around gender and gender relations isdeftly interwoven with stories from her personaljourney as a woman and a feminist academic tohelp the reader fully comprehend the meaningand importance of gender in our everyday socialworlds. The overall effect is excellent. This isalso the way for Bradley to re-affirm the slip-periness of the concept of gender and to reassureus that the political content is still relevanttoday.
Gender, as explored in this book, is a set ofsociological relationships, and like all sociologi-cal relationships, gender impacts on the experi-ence of each one of us as individuals. This is theessence of lived experience as exemplified by theseries of vignettes or illustrative sketches thatexplore the way gender manifests itself in peo-ple’s lives. Interestingly, these vignettes are set ina different typeface from the main chapters, sothey are easily identified. Some are narratives orpersonal stories of individuals including Bradleyherself. Others illustrate a series of dilemmas andpossibilities that individuals may face. This wayBradley brings the personal and the politicaltogether to show that the political relations ofgender, and disparities of power between menand women, affect all of us in every aspect of ourlives whether one realises it or not. The stylebrings the author closer to the readers and allowsthe latter to hear Bradley’s own voice rather thanconveying pedagogical interpretation or purelyscholarly material. This innovative structuremakes the book much more readable than manyother texts on gender.
The book is based on a number of proposi-tions. The first is that gender is a social construct;it is a category used by human beings as a way ofdividing up the world they perceive around them
444 Geographical Research • November 2010 • 48(4):440–453
© 2010 The AuthorsGeographical Research © 2010 Institute of Australian Geographers
