Against free markets, against science? Regulating the socio-economic effects of biotechnology

This study challenges the assumption that “globalization” forces are driving transformations in the relationships between states and markets. Employing three cases of policy debate regarding the regulation of agricultural biotechnology (ag‐biotech), we examine the role of discourse in the formation...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Rural sociology 2008-06, Vol.73 (2), p.147-179
Main Authors: Kinchy, Abby J, Kleinman, Daniel Lee, Autry, Robyn
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Advocacy
agricultural biotechnology
Agricultural policy
Agricultural practices
Agricultural production
Agriculture
biosafety
Biotechnology
Business
Case Studies
Cultural Influences
Debates
Discourse
Discourse Analysis
Economic impact
Environmental economics
European Union
Farms
Federal Regulation
Free Enterprise System
free markets
Global Approach
Globalization
Growth hormones
Ideology
Industry
laws and regulations
Market
Markets
Multinational corporations
Neoliberalism
Organizational Change
Political activism
Political Attitudes
Political economy
Politics
prices
production economics
Public Policy
Regulation
Resistance
Role
Rural and urban sociology
Rural sociology
Rural studies
Social activism
social impact
Sociology
somatotropin
State
State intervention
State Policy
State Role
Supply and Demand
surveys
Trade liberalization
Trends
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Description
Summary:This study challenges the assumption that “globalization” forces are driving transformations in the relationships between states and markets. Employing three cases of policy debate regarding the regulation of agricultural biotechnology (ag‐biotech), we examine the role of discourse in the formation of neoliberal regulatory schemes. We show that one important mechanism for the successful institutionalization of neoliberalism in the area of ag‐biotech has been the linking of neoliberal discourse with a discourse of scientism. This strategic combination of discourses has been used by advocates of biotechnology to depoliticize ag‐biotech—that is, to remove it further from political debate and state intervention. However, in each case examined here, certain state actors resisted industry demands for minimal regulation, and in each context this resistance produced markedly different outcomes.
ISSN:0036-0112
1549-0831
DOI:10.1526/003601108784514570