Agricultural startups’ visions of a sustainable agri-food future: a comparative case study in rural and urban Germany

Abstract

Current agriculture and food systems are major drivers of global environmental change and are linked to numerous ethical concerns. Against this backdrop, agri-startups are perceived as promising catalysts for new and more sustainable agri-food systems. However, their potential to actually contribute to sustainability transformations has been understudied. The aim of this study is to narrow this gap by analyzing German agri-startups’ visions and how these co-produce prevailing or novel sociotechnical imaginaries in agriculture. We conduct an in-depth qualitative comparative case study of agri-startups (n=16) in both a rural–agrarian and an urban (nonagricultural) setting in Germany. We identify four visions with varying scales and scopes of envisioned change, with different conceptualizations of sustainable agri-food transformation: (1) Reconfiguration of Sociomaterial Structures, (2) Partial Redesign, (3) Optimization of Value Chains, and (4) Incremental Improvement. Our findings highlight the relevance of the sociospatial context of agri-startups and innovation processes in co-producing agri-food futures. While urban startups tend to envision more holistic changes, rural agri-startups rather envision applied and pragmatic changes. We critically discuss the differences among these visions and their limited ability to transform existing agri-food systems. Finally, we highlight that agri-startups largely perpetuate existing imaginaries and that the disruptive character that is often attributed to (agri-) startups needs critical scrutiny.