Papers by Egil Petter Stræte
European Planning Studies, 2016
The Open Social Science Journal, 2010
Tourism is a labour-intensive industry with the potential to contribute towards the creation of j... more Tourism is a labour-intensive industry with the potential to contribute towards the creation of jobs and economic development in many rural areas. Innovation may be a driver of growth in tourism as well. However, there is a lack of empirical knowledge about innovation as a driver of growth in tourism, and its implications for a specific branch of tourism. The present study explores innovation and its characteristics in nature based tourism and the roles various actors can play in innovation processes. The empirical basis of the paper is a case study of sea-fishing tourism in Norway. The case includes a study of 12 suppliers of sea-fishing and accommodation, and a tour operator for such firms. The empirical findings show that product innovations were incremental, and cooperation between firms and a mediator was crucial in overcoming the step from innovation to diffusion. It is argued that innovation can be a crucial driver for establishing and renewing nature-based tourism firms. However, to give significant contribution to business activity and value added, diffusion of innovation is an important activity.
Norsk Geografisk Tidsskrift - Norwegian Journal of Geography, 2007
European Planning Studies, 2006
Some firms within the conventional agri-food processing industry change their business strategy b... more Some firms within the conventional agri-food processing industry change their business strategy by trying to innovate towards alternative foods, like regional foods. For firms which are part of a larger organization or integrated in a group of companies this is a special challenge. The purpose of this paper is to explore what happens when a firm within a large and complex organization tries to turn from a productivist strategy to a differentiated strategy. This exploration uses a case study from the Norwegian dairy industry. The case shows that powerful industrial conventions and lack of suitable organizational conditions can be a hindrance for organizational change. Organizational capabilities to change routines and conventions have significant influence on the result of the innovation process.
British Food Journal, 2014
Purpose -The aim of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of growth processes of ... more Purpose -The aim of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of growth processes of speciality food firms and how these processes influence the producers' perception of quality demands of the products. Design/methodology/approach -A case study approach was chosen covering four specialty food companies in Norway. This explorative study was conducted from the producer's perspective. Findings -Results show that, as part of growth processes, firms invest in different activities to strengthen the quality of their products to achieve distinctiveness in more competitive markets. The most important quality that contributes to distinctiveness and increased value seems to be traditional handicraft production processes. In some cases, expensive and time-consuming processes are invested in developing qualities that are not transformed into higher value in the market.
British Food Journal, 2008
Purpose -The main purpose of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of alternative... more Purpose -The main purpose of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of alternative processes of restructuring in the agri-food chain, emphasising the socio-cultural aspects. Design/methodology/approach -A conceptual discussion as to how qualities are embedded in speciality products to make them different from conventional products leads to the presentation of a model of modes of designed qualities. This model is applied to an empirical study of the milk supply chains and the related infrastructure in Norway and Wales. Findings -The research argues that qualities of food are constructed in relations between participants along the supply chain, consumers included. Development of speciality food needs new networks to create other modes of quality than the standard. Research limitations/implications -The concepts are contributions to analytical generalisations and not to statistical generalisations, i.e. they must be applied to cases. This study is related to the milk sector in two contexts. There is a need to explore other empirical cases. Originality/value -This paper uses new conceptual tools to analyse how food qualities are constructed in relations between food producers, processors and consumers. It contributes to the debate on the alternative food economy, especially with relation to aspects of quality.
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Papers by Egil Petter Stræte