Long-Term Social Network Dynamics in the Revival of Organic Mountain Cereals in the Swiss Alps

Abstract

Cereal cultivation has largely disappeared from high-altitude farming in the European Alps due to livestock specialisation and economic constraints. In the Swiss canton of Grisons, however, the Gran Alpin cooperative has revived organic mountain cereal production since the late 1980s. This study analyses the long-term development of the social networks that supported this revival, with a particular focus on the cooperative’s role. Using longitudinal Social Network Analysis (SNA), we examined collaboration and information exchange among actors in three periods (before 1995, 1996–2009, 2010–2022). Data were collected through expert interviews and an online survey, complemented by actor perceptions of influence. The results show that both collaboration and information exchange networks expanded substantially over time. Collaboration became progressively more distributed across actors, while information exchange became more centralised around specific coordinating nodes. Local actors consistently outnumbered non-local actors, and their share increased to nearly 70% in the most recent period. At the same time, non-local actors remained structurally relevant within the value chain. Across all periods, the Gran Alpin cooperative occupied core positions in both networks and ranked among the most central and influential actors. By tracing more than two decades of network development, the study provides rare longitudinal insights into how collaboration, coordination, and actor roles evolve within a regional mountain value chain, highlighting the structural dynamics through which such initiatives are sustained over time.