Heterogeneity of Agricultural Biogas Plants in France: A Sectoral System of Innovation Perspective

Abstract

Literature on biogas production mainly studies the outputs of production or the technical dimension of its organization. We argue that there is a need to study this process in a more institutional political economy perspective to understand the variety of biogas plants’ organizational models. We draw on the sectoral system of innovation and production perspective (SSIP) to analyze strategies of farmers adopting such an innovation in the agricultural sector. We mobilize data from semi-structured interviews with farmers and institutional stakeholders in France. We highlight a process of heterogenization of agricultural biogas plants, which results from a conflictual but lasting process of new technology appropriation by actors with various strategies within and outside the agricultural sector. We identify four different agricultural biogas production models: internalization and symbiosis, cereal grower using BP in injection, small group of farmers, partial outsourcing, and generic technology. We also discuss the possibility of the emergence of a new one: agricultural cooperative-investors joint projects.JEL codes: O33, Q16, Q42, Q48