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Ag icul u al Economics – Czech, 65, 2019 (2): 59–66 O iginal Pape
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Ag oecological coope a i ism has a long-s anding
adi ion in Ca alonia. The epo o Hue a and Ponce
(2010) e e s o he i s Ca alan ag oecological con-
sump ion expe iences, da ing back o he 1980s, due
o " he in e es among ci izens o he acquisi ion
o ecologic p oduc s and owa ds a sel -managed
consump ion model based on ai e condi ions bo h
o p oduce s and consume s,. Likewise, he epo
o Blanco e al. (2015) encompasses a signi ican pa
o socially inno a i e p ac ices. I includes coope a-
i es and ag oecological consume g oups embedded
in a se o p ac ices igh ly ela ed o al e na i e con-
sump ion and economic models. They a e he mos
ep esen a i e o ganisa ions in his ield, wi h 51.8%
o all o ganisa ions.
In Ca alonia, he phenomenon o ag oecologi-
cal coope a i ism comp ises economic, social and
poli ical aspec s. I is linked wi h he p omo ion
o ag oecology wi hin he amewo k o he sho
ood supply chains (SFSCs), wi h he social ma ke
in i s ques o s imula e he social and solida i y
economy and wi h poli ical engagemen h ough so-
cial mo emen s. Despi e dealing wi h h ee complex
dimensions, hey ela e o daily habi s we emb ace
when app oaching consump ion.
Acco ding o he las epo published by he Obse -
a o y o consump ion and ood dis ibu ion (2017),
hep e e ed g oce y pu chase channels a e supe -
ma ke s and cash-and-ca y wholesale s (accoun ing
o 43.9% o he ma ke sha e; hey g ew by1.2%
compa ed o he same pe iod in 2015). Discoun
s o es ha e also g own (+4.6%), achie ing a sha e
o 12.8%. Meanwhile, hype ma ke s and adi ional
s o es a e he wo dis ibu ion models ha pe o med
poo ly (d opping hei ma ke sha e by–3.7% and
–3.5% espec i ely).
Impac o in o ma ion and communica ion echnologies
in ag oecological coope a i ism in Ca alonia
Rica d Espel 1*, Ismael Peña-López1, O iol Mi albell2, Toni Ma ín3,
Nú ia Vega1
1Open Uni e si y o Ca alonia, Ba celona, Spain
2Uni e si y o Ba celona, Ba celona, Spain
3SCRM – Social BigDa a
*Co esponding au ho : ica despel @uoc.edu
Ci a ion: Espel R., Peña-López I., Mi albell O., Ma ín T., Vega N. (2019): Impac o in o ma ion and communica ion
echnologies in ag oecological coope a i ism in Ca alonia. Ag icul u al Economics – Czech, 65: 59–66.
Abs ac : In Ca alonia, ag oecological coope a i ism is pa o a se o al e na i es ha appea ed as a esponse o hecu-
en hegemonic ood consump ion model, con olled by la ge comme cial es ablishmen s. I is de ined byi s p omo ion
o sho ood supply chains (SFSCs), ope a es unde he alues o he social and solida i y economy (SSE) and holds a
s ong poli ical commi men . This a icle, on he one hand, s udies he se up o ag oecological coope a i ism unde -
s ood as he ou come o a ne wo k o p oduce s, in e media ies and consume s and, on he o he hand, examines he
impac o in o ma ion and communica ion echnologies (ICT) in he de elopmen o his consump ion model. The
da a has been ob ained h ough on-si e in e iews and online esea ch on he 56 consume g oups and coope a i es
p esen in Ba celona. Desc ip i e s a is ics and co ela ion analysis ha e been used o s udy hem. The esul s p o e
he salien ole ha ICT has as a acili a o in he ela ional ne wo k es ablished be ween he agen s ha ake pa in i ,
hus becoming a key cha ac e is ic elemen o he new ag oecological consume coope a i ism.
Keywo ds: ag oecological coope a i ism; in e -coope a ion; ICT; ne wo k socie y
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O iginal Pape Ag icul u al Economics – Czech, 65, 2019 (2): 59–66
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Among o he channels, coope a i es hold a ma ke
sha e o 9.8% (g owing i s sha e by 2.3% compa ed
o he same pe iod he yea be o e). When i comes
o esh g oce ies, adi ional s o es e ain he high-
es sales u no e (33.8%), al hough being a he
same ime he ones expe iencing he mos acu e
ma ke sha e d op compa ed o he same pe iod
in2015(–5.5%). The epo showcases wo ele an
elemen s o his esea ch. On he one hand, sales
ans e ed om adi ional o la ge-scale e ail
sec o s, discoun s o es, supe ma ke s and cash-
and-ca y wholesale s in hei bid o esh g oce y.
On he o he hand, bo h he olume (+33.2%) and he
alue (+27.7%) o e-comme ce pu chases inc eased.
The e o e, he consump ion model ha g oups o-
ge he all kinds o pu chases p e ails, and he ole
o in o ma ion and communica ion echnologies
(ICT) is inc easingly ele an .
In his con ex , he la ge ag i- ood indus y, which
is basically concen a ed in 10 la ge b ands glob-
ally (Ho man 2013), con ols he whole alue chain
(To ibio e al. 2012), p o iding p oduc s a he low-
es cos while complying wi h legal equi emen s.
Theco e o mos o he ma ke is concen a ed on a
ew agen s, a lo o in e media ies and li le a en ion
o he long dis ances om whe e he g oce ies come
om o he exis ing social jus ice condi ions whe e
hey a e p oduced, among o he aspec s (Mauleón
2009; Simón Fe nández e al. 2012; Vi as 2014).
Despi e his hegemony, we can obse e an al e na-
i e consump ion model ha pi o s a ound SFSCs
(Binimelis and Descombes 2010), cha ac e ised by a
close ela ionship be ween p oduce and consume
(Valls 2006; Ma échal 2008) based on a esocialisa ion
p ocess (Venn e al. 2006; Ja osz 2008). I p omo es
h ee elemen s: (i) he edis ibu ion o  alue h ough
a ne wo k ha opposes ag oindus ial consump ion;
(ii) he eco e y o con idence be ween p oduce and
consume ; and (iii) he a icula ion o new poli ical
and go e nance ma ke s uc u es ha p omo e
esilience and sus ainabili y. Consume g oups and
coope a i es, apa om es ablishing bonds wi h
SFSCs, also p omo e ag oecology ha , in con as
wi h ecology, is no only ocused onp omo ing a
p oduc ion based on he op imal use o na u al e-
sou ces ha does no ely on syn he ic chemical
p oduc s and gene ically modi ied o ganisms. I is
also conce ned wi h he social and poli ical im-
pac o he ood p oduc ion aceabili y (Badal e al.
2010). The ac ha hecollec i es s udied in his
epo ake pa in hema ke , unde s ood as a ool
a he se ice o  hewell-being o humans and li e
ep oduc ion inou plane , links hem o he g oup
o o ganisa ions ha cons i u e he social and soli-
da i y economy (SSE) (Pé ez deMendigu en e al.
2009). Fu he mo e, heeme gence o ag oecological
consume g oups and coope a i es isalso a poli ical
esponse agains he homogenei y esul ing om he
expansion o global ood supply chains (Khou y 2014).
The e o e, hey a e pa o  he an i-globalisa ion
mo emen and emb ace he he o ic o e i o ial
de ence, e y signi ican in Ca alonia, and ha im-
plies o pu sue a eco e y o he "iden i y o he si es"
ino de o p omo e social and economical e na i es
ha a ou elocalisa ion (Nel lo 2014).
Ul ima ely, i we add he alues ha he SSE p o-
mo es and he poli ical link o he o ganisa ions wi h
he social mo emen s o he disin e media ion and
p oximi y a iables ha a icula e he SFSCs, paying
special a en ion o ag oecology, we a e con ex ualising
a new consump ion model also conce ned wi h he
social, economic, en i onmen al and o ganisa ional
c i e ia behind e e y p oduc while de ined by being
poli ically ans o ma i e. I is because o his same
eason ha he e m "ag oecological coope a i ism"
encompasses he social, economic and poli ical di-
mension o his consump ion model. A model ha
equi es he in e -coope a ion o he in ol ed ac o s
o be scaled up (Ma ín-Mayo e al. 2017). Tha is, he
ela ional lows ough o s eng hen he cons uc ion
o he social ma ke , which is democ a ic, ecological
and suppo i e by na u e (Ga cia 2002).
I is a his s age whe e he adop ion o ICT can acili-
a e he eme gence o his a ay o po en ial ela ion-
ships, c ea ing a ne wo k o in e connec ions wi hin
he amewo k o a "ne wo k socie y" (Cas ells 1997).
Th ough social media pla o ms, use s can c ea e p o iles
and connec (Boyd and Ellison 2008), gene a ing new
lows o con en (Co mode and K ishnamu hy 2008).
These ne wo ks can be dense and enclosed, he esul
o he na ow ela ionships be ween membe s o he
same collec i e, o a he open and di used, as a con-
sequence o he lexibili y o hese same o ganisa ions
(Wellman 1997). In any case, Mi albell (2012) signi ies
he use ulness o social ne wo k pla o ms as a ool ha
eases he exchange and – o some ex en – he c ea ion
o knowledge, hanks o he po en ial enabled by he
in e ac ion be ween i s use s. Fu he mo e, digi al
pla o ms should be an ins umen o scale he impac
o adi ional coope a i ism, allowing a new ype o o -
ganisa ions called pla o m coope a i es (Scholz 2016).
In his sense, open echnology and open knowledge
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mus be he way ha pla o m coope a i es connec
wi h digi al commons (Fus e and Espel 2018). This
new app oach o coope a i ism, connec ed o digi al
commons, is p omo ing an al e na i e o he unico n
pla o ms – like Ube o Ai bnb – o collabo a i e
economy (Fus e e al. 2017).
GOALS, HYPOTHESIS AND CASE STUDY
This a icle, on he one hand, aims o analyse heex-
en his ne wo k o ag oecological coope a i ism,
a ou s a sel -managed, social, p oximi y-based and
economically ai consump ion, how i is a icula ed.
On he o he hand, i aims o assess he ole ICT holds
ega ding he a icula ion o his ne wo k.
The hypo hesis is ha consume g oups and coop-
e a i es c ea e a ne wo k o ela ionships wi h hei
p oduce s and in e media ies h ough ICT ha acili-
a es in e -coope a ion, and he e o e p omo es ag o-
ecological coope a i ism. In o de o do so, we ocus
on he s udy o 56 ac i e collec i es p esen in heci y
o Ba celona (Espel e al. 2015), he a ea wi h he
highes olume o consume g oups and coope a i es
in Ca alonia and whe e SSE accoun s o 7% sha e
o g oss domes ic p oduc (GDP) (Fe nàndez and
Mi ó 2016).
METHODOLOGY
D awing om o he simila esea ch (Juliá e al.
2006; Me oño and A cas 2006), we ha e designed
a me hodology ha blends on-si e in e iews and
online esea ch.
The in e iews ha e been conduc ed wi h a ques-
ionnai e including wo se s o ques ions. On he
one hand, we ha e in eg a ed he indica o s o mu-
la ed by Pam a Pam (XES and SETEM 2015) in o de
ode e mine which o ganisa ions a e pa o he SSE
inCa alonia, using he a iables o p oximi y, ai
ade and in e -coope a ion, which a e assessed wi h
a 0 o 5 g ading. Each indica o is disc imina o y (i is
ei he accomplished o no ), and he di e en g ades
dic a e hei le el o excellence. On he o he hand,
ega ding ICT, we assess he alue o ganisa ions gi e
o ICT o hei unc ioning, he ools used o man-
age o ganisa ional issues, and hei digi al oo p in ,
among o he ele an ac i i ies and con en s.
A he beginning o he in e iew, we ga he in-
o ma ion such as he numbe o a ilia es and he
lis ing o p oduce s and in e media ies. The ques ion-
nai e p o ides quan i a i e (pe cen age o compli-
ance ega ding SSE c i e ia o assessmen o alue
gi en oICT in he global unc ioning o he g oup,
o ins ance) and quali a i e da a (a de ailed epo
on how any gi en SSE c i e ia is obse ed o he
desc ip ion o a echnological ool adop ed, o in-
s ance). Gi en ha one o he goals o he esea ch is
o unco e he ole o in e media ies wi hin hene -
wo k, he ques ionnai e is also ca ied ou wi h he
second-g ade coope a i es and wi h o he in e me-
dia y o ganisa ions. Ino de o collec in o ma ion
conce ning he digi al oo p in o p oduce s and
in e media ies insocial ne wo ks, we ha e ca ied
ou a ne nog aphic esea ch based on links ha
appea on websi es and o icial blogs, limi ing his
esea ch o he 157p oduce s and 13in e media ies
included in he s udy sample be ween Ap il 10–20,
2017. In he i s place, a ac ual analysis has been
conduc ed in o de o co obo a e hei p esence
in each o he social ne wo ks s udied: Facebook,
Twi e and Ins ag am.
To assess he esul s, we ha e conduc ed desc ip i e
s a is ics o each o ou a iables and a co ela ion
analysis o hem (numbe o a ilia es, p oximi y, ai
ade, in e -coope a ion, he alue gi en o ICT, p o-
essionalisa ion and digi al oo p in in social media)
ino de o quan i y he exis ing ela ionships be ween
hem and iden i y key elemen s. On he o he hand,
we ha e conduc ed a ne wo k analysis ( isually ep e-
sen ed wi h Gephi) o s udy he mos ele an nodes,
he exis ing connec ions be ween hem and he ole
o second-g ade o ganisa ions ha ac asin e medi-
a ies be ween p oduce s and consume s.
RESULTS
Consume g oups and coope a i es
Mos o he coope a i es and consume g oups
unc ion hanks o he olun a y commi men o hei
a ilia es (91.2%). The es (8.8%) coun on p o es-
sionals ha ake ca e o speci ic asks: economic and
o de s managemen , logis ics. Despi e being ewe ,
p o essional g oups ha e a highe a e age numbe
o a ilia es (71.5) compa ed o he ones un by ol-
un ee s (28.75). Likewise, hey do no se hemsel es
a speci ic g ow h limi , while olun ee g oups do,
causing wai ing lis s when new membe s wan ojoin,
a ci cums ance ha o en ends up wi h he c ea ion
o new g oups.
Rega ding he h ee c i e ia used os udy SSE, we
no ice ha : he p oximi y c i e ia a e accomplished
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wi hou signi ican a ia ion bo h by olun ee (81%)
and p o essional (80%) g oups. This indica es ha
he s udied o ganisa ions p io i ise pu chasing local
p oduc s. D awing om he on-si e in e iews we
conduc ed, we can asse ha his akes place because
hese o ganisa ions ha e unde aken an in e nal con-
side a ion p ocess and ollowed a policy consis ing in
limi ing he geog aphical scope o he p oduc s hey
buy, p o iding a he same ime sensibilisa ion ools
op omo e p oximi y ade.
The ai ade c i e ia also show a high le el o ac-
complishmen , wi h a minimum a ia ion be ween
olun ee (73%) and p o essional (72%) g oups. This
indica es ha hese g oups y o pu chase ai ade
p oduc s o p oduc s ha ce i y decen sala ies
and he minimisa ion o in e media ies. As a esul
o he on-si e in e iews conduc ed, we can asse
ha his happens because hese o ganisa ions ha e
unde aken an in e nal conside a ion p ocess and
emb ace as hei policy o p io i ise pu chasing ai
ade p oduc s o p oduc s ha gua an ee decen
sala ies and he minimisa ion o in e media ies.
Likewise, hey also o e sensibilisa ion ma e ials
ha p omo e ai ade and communica ion chan-
nels wi h he p oduce when i comes o se ing he
p ices. Ac ually, a lo o consume g oups egula ly
isi hei main p oduce s, show in e es in hei
p ojec s and encou age hem o ge in ol ed in hei
assemblies. Some g oups e en help p oduce s in
ha d-wo k asks such as he sewing o he ha es .
The in e -coope a ion c i e ia show signi ican a i-
a ion be ween olun a y (42%) and p o essional (84%)
g oups. Volun a y g oups sp ead he SSE p inciples
and ac i i ies and coun on a leas some supplie s
ha pa icipa e in i , while p o essional g oups also
sea ch o SSE supplie s whene e a p oduc o se -
ice is needed, and mos o hei supplie s come om
SSE. Besides accomplishing he p e iously men ioned
c i e ia, some o hem e en accomplish excellence
by s a egically con ibu ing o he c ea ion o he
social ma ke .
Rega ding hei use o ICT, he g oups g ade hei
impo ance wi h an a e age o 7.9 ou o 10, wi h
nosigni ican a ia ion be ween olun ee and p o-
essional g oups. The esul s o he in e iews poin
ha hey make use o ICT o manage he in e nal
join o de s wi h p oduce s. The mos used echnol-
ogy is Google, while some o hem ha e de eloped
o adap ed open-sou ce so wa e.
Rega ding hei social media oo p in , he esul s
show ha 57.9% o o ganisa ions ha e open p o iles
ina leas one o he ne wo ks. None heless, hei
usage a ies signi ican ly. The e a e some g oups
ha pos and upda e con en o en, linking wi h sali-
en opics in hei sec o , by e e ing o p oduce s,
sp eading poli ical (agains The T ansa lan ic T ade
and In es men Pa ne ship (TTIP), o ins ance)
o sensibilisa ion ( ood was e, o ins ance) campaigns,
while o he s ba ely do i , do no do i a all o keep
hei social media p o iles p i a e.
Supplie s and in e media y o ganisa ions
The coope a i es and consume g oups om Ba -
celona coun on 114 di ec supplie s (91.7%) and
13in e media ies (8.3%). 91.7% o he p oduc s a e
p o ided by a di ec supplie and 8.3% by an in e -
media y. This igu e, along wi h he a e age dis ance
om he supplie s (278.7 km) ein o ces he ask ha
g oups a ound SFSCs ca y ou . Tha is, SFSCs ac-
complish he wo main elemen s ha hey ough o:
p oximi y (81%) and disin e media ion (90.7%). This
indica o shows a sligh ly highe endency as o ol-
un ee g oups no dealing wi h in e media ies (91.2%)
compa ed o p o essional g oups (87%).
71.42% o in e media y o ganisa ions a e pa o  he
ins i u ions ha o m he SSE, while jus 6.3% o p o-
duce s ha e aken he SSE ques ionnai e. Rega ding
he h ee key SSE c i e ia conce ning ou esea ch,
we no ice ha p oximi y is accomplished in 67%,
ai ade in 70% and in e -coope a ion in 50% o he
cases. As o social ne wo ks, 69.2% o in e medi-
a y o ganisa ions ha e an open p o ile on Facebook,
while 46.2% also use Twi e and 15.3% o he social
ne wo ks, such as Ins ag am, YouTube o Google+.
When i comes o p oduce s, 62.4% o hem a e onFa-
cebook, 36.9%onTwi e , 28% on Ins ag am and
14.6% on o he social ne wo ks, such as YouTube,
LinkedIn o Flick .
Highligh ed Elemen s
The SSE c i e ia-based accomplishmen compa ison
be ween coope a i es and supplie s (ei he di ec o in-
e media ies) igu e (Figu e 1) shows ha coope a i es
accomplish a highe p oximi y a io (81% compa ed
o67%) and ai ade (72% compa ed o70%), whe eas
supplie s p esen highe in e -coope a ion capabili ies
(50% compa ed o 44%). Despi e he a ia ion no be-
ing signi ican in quan i a i e e ms, he esul s pu
on display a ein o cemen o coope a i es, especially
owa ds SFSCs, and sligh ly owa ds in e -coope a ion,
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while supplie s acqui e a g ea e ole in a ou ing
in e -coope a ion be ween agen s.
The Figu e 2 compa es social media p esence be-
ween coope a i es, in e media ies and di ec supplie s
displays a lowe le el o in e es among coope a-
i es(56%) o sp ead hei ac i i y in such ne wo ks
compa ed o p oduce s (69%) and in e media ies (69%).
In o de o measu e he ela ionship be ween he
s udied a iables: (i) p oximi y, (ii) ai ade, (iii)in e -
coope a ion, (i ) ICT usage, ( ) social media p esence,
( i) p o essionalisa ion, ( ii) numbe o a ilia es and
( iii) in e media ion, we ha e unde aken a co ela-
ion analysis (Table 1).
The esul s show ha a iables beha e independen ly
o each o he . Despi e some simila i ies occu ing,
hese a e no signi ican in quan i a i e e ms and show
ela i ely low alues. This has, om ou poin o  iew,
a double-sided in e p e a ion ha ac ually poin s
in he same di ec ion. On he one hand, he a iables
ha e been concep ualised consis en ly enough, as hey
show no edundancies. On he o he hand, i is co -
obo a ed ha – as he in e iews p o e– i is highly
likely ha hese a e a iables ha depend onhighly
independen app oxima ions and decisions by na u e,
ei he due o hei idiosync a ic di e ences o because
o he capabili ies and s a egies a e equi ed o i s
implemen a ion—as in he case o ICT. In his ega d,
he independence shown by ICT and social media
can be explained by he managemen cha ac e o he
o me and by he communica ion na u e o he la e .
The ne wo k o ag oecological coope a i es o Ba -
celona (Espel e al. 2017b), a anged by a numbe
Figu e 1. Social and solida i y economy (SSE) c i e ia-ba-
sed accomplishmen compa ison be ween coope a i es
(numbe = 56) and supplie s (numbe = 157)
Sou ce: au ho s
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
SSE accomplishmen (%)
Coope a i es
Supplie s
P oximi y Fai ade In e -coope a ion
Figu e 2. P esence in social media compa ison be ween
coope a i es (numbe = 56), in e media ies (numbe = 13)
and p oduce s (numbe = 144)
Sou ce: au ho s
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
Di ec supplie s
Social ne wo ks p o iles (%)
Social Ne wo ks
Coope a i es In e media
Table 1. Co ela ion o a iables s udied (numbe o coope a i es = 56)
NUM PRO FT ICO ICT PRF IME SM
Numbe o a ilia es (NUM)––––––––
P oximi y (PRO)0.12 –––––––
Fai T ade (FT)0.24 0.54 ––––––
In e -coope a ion (ICO)0.41 0.25 0.09 –––––
ICT usage (ICT)0.19 –0.04 –0.05 0.16 – – – –
P o essionalisa ion (PRF)0.63 0.10 0.00 0.49 0.11 – – –
In e media ion (IME)0.38 0.04 0.17 0.15 0.28 0.07 – –
Social Media (SM)0.12 0.10 –0.02 0.29 0.18 0.27 –0.18 –
all alues a e signi ican a 95%
Sou ce: au ho s

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h ps://doi.o g/10.17221/171/2018-AGRICECON
o connec ions and cen ali y, we no ice ha he
coope a i es Mespilus and L’Aixada a e he ones
ha display he mos connec ions be ween consume
o ganisa ions and in he s udy o e all. Meanwhile,
Fo ma ges de Puigce e and Cal Valls a e he p o-
duce s wi h mo e p esence among he coope a i es.
I is wo h no ing he cen al posi ion o Sel a ana,
a p oduce wi h jus nine g oups o coope a i es
asclien s bu wi h a huge p esence in he ne wo k.
I is also necessa y ounde sco e ha he wo in e -
media y o ganisa ions be e posi ioned, Que iu e
and Món Ve d, a e lis ed he 30 h and he 43 d.
CONCLUSION
The i s c i ical aspec in he de ini ion o ag o-
ecological consume g oups and coope a i es a e i s
sel -managemen capabili ies. The esul s o his a icle
shed ligh on he consume ac i i y ela ions ha hese
o ganisa ions (91.2% o hem hanks o he olun a y
commi men o i s a ilia es) es ablish wi h p oduce s
and in e media ies. In all cases, he less nume ous
g oup o o ganisa ions, he p o essional ones (8.8%)
coun on a la ge numbe o a ilia es (71.5ona e -
age, compa ed o 28.8 in he case o  olun ee - un
o ganisa ions). The e o e, we can conclude ha p o-
essional o ganisa ions ha e g ea e po en ial, as hey
exe hei in luence o e a la ge g oup o consume s
compa ed o olun ee g oups.
In ou de ini ion o ag oecological consume g oups
and coope a i es, we a icula ed a double-sided app oxi-
ma ion: hei belonging o SFSCs and hei connec ion
wi h he alues p omo ed by he SSE. On he one hand,
ega ding SFSCs (p oximi y and disin e media ion),
he da a conce ning he a e age spa ial dis ance be-
ween supplie s and coope a i es shows ha his igu e
equals an a e age o 278.7 km compa ed o an a e age
o 3827.8km ega ding he p oduc s consumed by he
Spanish ci izenship as a whole (Simón Fe nández e al.
2012). On he o he hand, he consump ion o p od-
uc s di ec ly supplied by p oduce s s ands a 90.7%.
In sho , he wo signi ican elemen s ha de ine he
na u e o o ganisa ions belonging o SFSCs a e ac-
complished. Rega ding hei link o he SSE, as we ha e
poin ed in he esul s sec ion, he se o o ganisa ions
s udied doaccomplish he c i e ia de ined wi h he
ques ionnai e, speci ied in he social, economic and
en i onmen al assessmen o each p ojec .
None heless, i we ocus on he h ee SSE key c i-
e ia used in ou esea ch (p oximi y, ai ade and
in e -coope a ion) we no ice ha while he o me
wo a e accomplished in mo e han 70% o he cases
bo h in olun ee and p o essional o ganisa ions, he
la e , in e -coope a ion (which is c i ical o social
ma ke g ow h) (Fe nàndez and Mi ó 2016), shows a
signi ican a ia ion, wi h an accomplishmen a io
o 84% o p o essional g oups and 42% o olun ee
g oups. The e o e, i cons i u es a new indica o ha
ein o ces he p esence o p o essionals as a equi e-
men o he expansion o a consump ion model ha
d aws om he SSE alues. This is especially ele an
as p o essional g oups do no se hemsel es a g ow h
limi , as i is he case o he g oups un by olun-
ee s. In addi ion, i is wo h no ing ha he p esence
o in e media ies does no unde mine he p omo ion
o he social ma ke , as 71.42% o he in e media y
o ganisa ions s udied a e pa o he SSE as well.
Rega ding echnology usage, which ob ains a high
alua ion (7.7), we also no ice a ele an elemen :
hei a en ion is ocused on he g oups’ ope a i e
p ocesses (82% usage in o de s’ managemen ) a he
han on using hem as a ool o sp ead hei ac i i y
and p omo e hei alues (only 56.1% a e p esen
insocial media pla o ms). No signi ican a ia ion
is app ecia ed in his case be ween p o essional and
olun ee g oups. The e o e, we can conclude ha ,
asa whole, ICT usage is p io i ised as a ool embedded
in hei ope a i e p ocesses a he han as a commu-
nica ion ins umen .
In his sense, in ou p esen a ion o esul s, we ha e
co obo a ed ha co ela ion a iables (p oximi y,
ai ade, in e -coope a ion, ICT usage, social media
p esence, p o essionalisa ion, numbe o a ilia es
andin e media ion) do no p o ide conclusi e empi i-
cal easons, al hough hey ce ainly allow us osignal
ha he mo e amily membe s a e included, he
g ea e he o ganisa ion’s openness is. An explana-
ion may be ha he social capi al o i s membe s
inc eases along wi h he p obabili y o posi i e and
e ec i e inclusion o membe s wi h ies and con ac s
in o he o ganisa ions.
Likewise, i seems ha p o essional indi iduals
could help o es ablish deepe coope a ion wi h o he
o ganisa ions. In any case, i seems ob ious ha he
ne wo k-based s uc u e and he na u e o consume
g oups and coope a i es posi i ely co espond wi h
a di use and open ne wo k (Wellman 1997). In his
ega d, he on-si e in e iews con i m his aspec .
Excep o e y speci ic ins ances, as wi h Poblenou
coope a i es coo dina o (wi h which he neighbou -
hood’s g oups o ganize ac i i ies and manage o de s
o speci ic p oduc s join ly) o some o he g oups ha
65
Ag icul u al Economics – Czech, 65, 2019 (2): 59–66 O iginal Pape
h ps://doi.o g/10.17221/171/2018-AGRICECON
a icula e pa o hei o e h ough second-g ade
coope a i es (i.e. Què iu e), coope a i es p esen
an odd, occasional le el o ela ions be ween hem.
The ac ha he wo mos ele an in e media y
o ganisa ions, second-g ade coope a i es Què iu e
and Món Ve d, occupy a low-le el cen ali y in ou
ne wo k analysis ( he 30 h and he 43 d posi ion,
espec i ely) also sheds ligh on hei mode a e in-
luence as in e -coope a ion agen s nowadays.
Summing up, we can conclude ha , in con as wi h
o he consume al e na i es linked o he p omo ion
o p oximi y p oduc s, o which echnology is an es-
sen ial aspec o hei unc ioning, as i is he case wi h
The Flood Assembly (Espel e al. 2017a), consume
g oups and coope a i es ampli y he alues p omo ed
by he SSE and, he e o e, he possibili y o ein o cing
he social ma ke h ough sel -managemen , specially
i p o essional indi iduals ake pa in i . In any case,
ICT eme ge as a ele an elemen in he ope a i e
a icula ion o ag oecological consume g oups and
ep esen a c i ical asse in he de elopmen o SFSCs
and he SSE. As we poin ed in he in oduc ion, he ole
o open so wa e and open knowledge in he adop ion
o pla o m coope a i ism should be an oppo uni y
oscale he impac o coope a i ism in he sense o  hei
alues (Fus e and Espel 2018). Acco ding o he SSE-
based assessmen c i e ia used by Pam a Pam, which
ha e been used in his esea ch, usage o knowledge
licenses and open-sou ce so wa e a e ela ed o he
alues p omo ed by SSE. Thus, in u u e esea ch,
i would be in e es ing o analyse how ag oecological
coope a i es a e adop ing digi al commons oscale
hei impac as a coope a i e pla o ms (Scholz 2016)
and, wi h ha , build an al e na i e ounico n pla o ms
(Fus e Mo ell e al. 2017).
Acknowledgemen s
O iol, i was un wo king wi h you while you we e
among us. Now you a e gone, bu he good wo k e-
mains. So long, iend. Rica d, Ismael, Nú ia and Toni.
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