Unarticulated tensions in the marketization of organic agriculture: the case of pioneer organizations in Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Abstract

ABSTRACT Organic agriculture has developed in Indonesia since the 1980s due to the work of various pioneer social movement organizations and as a reaction to the ecological and socio-economic problems arising from the Green Revolution. In the twenty-first century, organic agriculture has undergone standardization and market expansion, following the dominant agroeconomic trajectory. This article discusses the way three pioneer organic organizations in the Yogyakarta region have reacted to these developments. The findings show two divergent reactions, with one organization resistant to market expansion, while the others are more open to it due to their funding needs. However, all three share tensions regarding issues of fairness in market relations. These tensions reveal unarticulated socio-structural issues that tend to be overlooked in the current trend towards marketization in organic agriculture. The move away from its social movement foundations leads to laments that ‘organic has lost its way’. This article argues that the tensions illustrate issues voiced by the conventionalization debate in organic agriculture and that these issues should be articulated to reclaim the transformative potential of organic as a social movement in Indonesia.