NTFP COMMODITY
CHAINS
Global and local, formal and
informal economies meet in the commercialization of Upper Peninsula NTFPs that
are sold raw. Commodity chains for these products can be thought of as
having four key links:
- Harvesting
- Buying
- Processing
- Distribution
Each microenterprise is
distinctive in its mix of income sources and the plant materials that it uses.
However, UP NTFP commodity chains share many general characteristics:
|
Material Transformations |
UP NTFP
are processed and sold as decoratives, edibles, fragrances, and crafts. |
|
Transportation |
In the
early links of the chain, gatherers provide most transportation. In
the later links, buyers transport their product regionally but use shipping
companies to reach more distant markets. |
|
Temporal Flows |
Demand
and biological availability dictate temporal flows. Some businesses
have a single peak season, others have two. All are especially busy in
the fall.
|
|
Spatial Flows |
With the
exception of princess pine, the spatial flow of products is localized from
harvesting through processing. At the distribution stage, UP NTFP move
nationally and internationally. |
|
Relations of Production |
Gatherers act as independent contractors, paid in cash on delivery.
Processors may be piece or wage laborers: the former function as independent
contractors, the latter occasionally receive some benefits as well as
wages. In the distribution link, edibles are sold through personal contacts
and spot orders. Decorative/ fragrance businesses frequently rely on annual
contracts. |
|
Organization of Production |
Participants work alone or in small groups, with transactions within and
between links strongly regulated by social relations. Supply of raw and
finished product is limited more by labor than by biological availability.
Capital investments and resources are minimal at all stages. |
|
Technology |
Gathering relies almost exclusively on hand picking or muscle-powered hand
tools. Processing is characterized by high manual labor inputs and low
mechanization. |
|
Capital Transactions |
Capital
transactions move in a generally steady progression through a commodity
chain from the informal to the formal economy, with return to investments of
time and/or material resources increasing almost geometrically. |
Commodity chain example
–
Boughs to grave blankets.
Social Regulation of NTFP
Commodity Chains
Buyers report that their NTFP
supplies are limited more by labor than biological availability. Consequently,
they report that maintaining relationships of respect and reciprocity is
critical to assuring that they have raw product to process and finished product
to sell. Buyers often keep in touch with gatherers and processors throughout
the year, inquiring about their health and families. Some buy product when they
don’t need it, in order to call on a gatherer or processor when s/he might not
want or need to work. Personal relationships are also important in the
distribution link of commodity chains. Close personal contact with wholesalers
and end-point consumers builds a sense of loyalty and influences long-term
demand.
Satisficing Behavior
UP gatherers and buyers alike
report that their harvesting and financial strategies are geared to meet
specific needs or goals rather than maximize their incomes. Several gatherers
indicated that they harvest only as much as will be used for personal
consumption or must be sold to earn the money to pay bills, defray the cost of
family celebrations, or meet other financial obligations. Buyers report turning
down business that they feel could not be sustained over the long term or would
expand their operations beyond a scope that they could manage personally. Their
stated economic goals are long-term business survival and modest but reliably
comfortable lifestyles rather than maximum profit in any single year.
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