Quality, Nature, and Embeddedness: Some Theoretical Considerations in the Context of the Food Sector*
分析了食品生产和消费中向“质量”的转变，认为质量与自然和供应链的本地嵌入性紧密相关，比较了政治经济学、行动者网络理论和惯例理论，指出惯例理论更适合分析食品行业的质量协商。
Abstract: In this paper we analyze a turn to “quality” in both food production and consumption. We argue that quality in the food sector, as it is being asserted at the present time, is closely linked to nature and the local embeddedness of supply chains. We thus outline the broad contours of this shift and discuss the most appropriate theoretical approaches. We consider political economy, actor‐network theory, and conventions theory and argue that, whereas political economy has proved useful in the analysis of globalization, it may prove less so in the examination of quality. We concentrate, therefore, upon actor‐network theory and conventions theory and show that the former allows nature to be brought to the center of analytical attention but provides few tools for the analysis of quality, especially in the context of the food sector. Conventions theory, on the other hand, links together a range of aspects found in food supply chains and allows us to consider the establishment of quality as a system of negotiation between specific qualities. We illustrate possible uses of the approach through a brief consideration of food supply chains in Wales.