Smart Mixes in International Supply Chains: A Definition and Analytical Tool, Illustrated with the Example of Organic Imports into Switzerland

Robert Home,Mareike Weiner,Christian Schader

doi:10.3390/admsci11030099

Robert Home, Mareike Weiner + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci11030099

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Abstract

Combinations of national and international, hard and soft powers, known as Smart Mixes, have been proposed as a way for governments in consumer countries to influence the behaviour of supply chain actors who operate outside their jurisdiction. However, the Smart Mix concept has not yet been precisely defined, which has hindered its operationalization as a means of analyzing the governance of long and complex international supply chains. The aim of this contribution is to derive a working definition of Smart Mixes and use it to create and demonstrate a generalizable analytical tool that facilitates identification of whether a Smart Mix exists in an international supply chain. To address this aim, we reviewed existing literature on Smart Mixes to define the concept, which led to a three-step process for analyzing a supply chain. In a second stage, we demonstrate the process by applying it to the example of organic imports into Switzerland, using data from expert interviews and existing public documentation. The application showed that the governance of the organic sector in Switzerland related to imported products fulfils the criteria for it to be considered a Smart Mix that enables the Swiss Government to influence the behaviour of supply chain actors outside its jurisdiction. This example shows that the proposed Smart Mix concept is sound under particular circumstances: in this case, when the interests of the public and private sectors are aligned so that binding public measures provide protection to the private sector. These circumstances are not unique to organic imports into Switzerland, which allows the conclusion that Smart Mixes may provide sustainability solutions in other international supply chains.

Highlights

Environmental and social aspects of sustainability are gaining importance in many economic sectors as both the environmental limits of growth and blatant human rights violations become increasingly apparent (European Commission 2014; Labowitz and Baumann-Pauly 2015; Steffen et al 2015)
The application showed that the governance of the organic sector in Switzerland related to imported products fulfils the criteria for it to be considered a Smart Mix that enables the Swiss Government to influence the behaviour of supply chain actors outside its jurisdiction
We examine whether the mix of measures that can be found in the Swiss organic sector and which are relevant to imports indicate a convergence between the interests of public and private actors’ interests (Kinderman 2016) and interact to improve sustainability outcomes in the parts of the sector outside the jurisdiction of the Swiss government

Summary

Introduction

Environmental and social aspects of sustainability are gaining importance in many economic sectors as both the environmental limits of growth and blatant human rights violations become increasingly apparent (European Commission 2014; Labowitz and Baumann-Pauly 2015; Steffen et al 2015). 6) points out that “neither voluntary market-based approaches nor a grand legal framework on their own” can create change but, in combination, could generate incremental and cumulative change to achieve their goals These combinations have come to be known as “Smart Mixes,” with the term first used by Gunningham et al (1998) and mainstreamed by Ruggie (2011) who added the requirement to include voluntary measures. Cossart et al (2017) noted that government efforts to force corporate social responsibility (CSR) are usually met with strong opposition from the business sector, are usually accepted if they are part of a business-friendly package tax deal. Examples of this strategy include Mauritius (Kinderman 2016), the U.K. Examples of this strategy include Mauritius (Kinderman 2016), the U.K. (Kinderman 2012), and India (Van Zile 2011), in which the CSR clauses were added to make tax cuts for business more palatable to the public

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