Economics, Policy, and Organic Agriculture

Is organic agriculture so special that special social theories and methods are needed? The article investigates the question in two steps: First, the article address the question whether agriculture is special. Second, whether organic agriculture is special. It is concluded that from an economic point of view new research suggests that the organic sector can only be conceptualized and understood in the general social context. If the sector is analyzed as independent of general social context, it will lead to insufficient, and in worst case wrong, understandings and subsequently inadequate policy recommendations

Markets and Institutional Capacity

Adequate explanations concerning the introduction of production and consumption of organic food in Denmark imply the necessity to engage a certain understanding of markets. Markets should subsequently not be seen as entities nor places but as complex relations between human actors. Further, the establishment, maintenance and development of markets are depending on the capacity of the actors to enter into continuous and enhancing interplay

Rural-urban co-development - challenges to post-industrial society

The World Commission (1987) pointed out that sustainable development in general is a prerequisite to alleviate fatal threats to human future. In this note1 it is stated that it is necessary to return to basic concepts and reflections to ensure that the aim, means, and context are remembered when radical changes to gain sustainability are designed. In particular this is the case when humanity’s social interplay (i.e., technology) with natural life support systems is in focus. Thus, the note is founded on a restatement of basics linked to the essential challenge facing post-industrial societies. In that light it is revealed that the current reactions to the challenge are insufficient because sustainability implies radical rather than marginal changes and that the radical changes inter alia imply a new design of rural - urban co-development

Commons - Whose Commons? Considering conceptual approaches to rural space of production

The article takes its point of departure in current suggestions stating that the idea of ‘commons’ could be a universal and normative guideline for how to organise a part of the interplay between nature and human activity. It is stated, that the concept in contemporary discourses has a widespread spectrum of connotations and is engaged for descriptive, prescriptive, and normative purposes. The content, character and meaning thus depend on context and dimensions in focus; the point is illustrated by means of the historical Danish commons. In a consecutive investigation of implicated concepts from social sciences (‘property rights’ being the starting point) it is similarly stated that implications cannot be determined ex ante. By means of elements from institutional economics and the sociology of space, suggestions for a conceptual framework are presented as basis for more detailed studies at a lower level of abstraction. Returned to Danish farming – but now in its contemporary settings – it is concluded that the framework of commons not adequately can be copied-and-pasted into present context due to the complex interconnectivity where local agriculture have boundless prerequisites and effects

The Evolution of Organic Agriculture in Denmark

In this working paper it is the intention to outline the evolution of organic agriculture in Denmark. The paper do not claim to be a total presentation of the history but is aiming to present important milestones, actors involved, intentions and reflections of the actors, and especially to illustrate interaction between the sector labelled as “organic agriculture” and the social surroundings. Based on the findings of the OASE-project a cut off of epoches is used to structure the presentation: Grassroot pioneering, rallying by means of separation (the more excluded an focus narrowed to farming), inclusion (organic agriculture certified by government etc.), absorption (organic farming as an integrated part of established agri systems) while the present epoche is suggested as Funky Business

The efficiency myth

The evolution of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in EEC/EU and the evolution of the Danish agricultural policy in the last four decades can be seen as complementary. That is the case because the European community as a whole could not originally supply itself with foods while Danish agriculture could supply a market around four times the size of its domestic one. Simultaneously agricultural policies in EEC and Denmark from the late 1950s were based on the same measurement, that is efficiency, and the same means, that is industrialisation of agricultural production. This common but complementary origin is the basis for the following analysis where the aim is to reflect present double-bindings related to the CAP by means of a brief historical sketch of the evolution of Danish agriculture and agricultural policy in the 20th century

The Reservation Wage Theory, Vocational Rehabilitation and the Return to Work of Disabled Employees

Previous studies find that participation in educational measures does not increase sick-listed em-ployees’ chance of returning to work. This is surprising because education is supposed to increase human capital and raise productivity. However, a higher productivity may make the participants raise their reservation wage. Therefore, it is possible that educational measures increase the chance of returning to work in high pay jobs but reduce the chance of returning to work in low pay jobs. To test this hypothesis, we use panel data of 671 long-term sick-listed employees to estimate a random effects hazards rate model, with returning to work in high paid jobs and low-medium paid jobs, re-spectively, as the two outcomes. Our findings do not support the reservation wage hypothesis. We find that while participation in education significantly increases the probability of returning to work in medium or low paid jobs, it does not affect the probability of resuming work in high paid jobs.

Case Management Interviews and the Return to Work of Disabled Employees

This study measures the effect of case management interview (CMI) on 1,000 long-term sick-listed employees’ probability of returning to work. In contrast to previous studies, we use instrumental variables to correct for selection effects in CMI. Using a competing hazard rate model, we find that CMI increases the probability of returning to work for the pre-sick leave employer, but has no effect on the probability of resuming work for a new employer. We argue that CMI either motivates the sick-listed employees to resume work or adjusts for asymmetric information between the employee and the pre-sick leave employer.Hazard rate model; case management; long-term sickness; work-disability; return to work

Does graded return to work improve disabled workers’ labor market attachment?

Using Danish register and survey data, we examine the effect of a national graded return-to-work program on the probability of sick-listed workers returning to regular working hours. During program participation, the worker receives the normal hourly wage for the hours worked and sickness benefit for the hours off work. When the worker’s health improves, working hours are increased until the sick-listed worker is able to work regular hours. Taking account of unobserved differences between program participants and non-participants, we find that participation in the program significantly increases the probability of returning to regular working hours.