New momentum to Bangkok's organic food movement: interspersed scenes led by mindful pioneers Inaugural-Dissertation zur Erlangung des Doktorgrades der Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Universität zu Köln vorgelegt von Judith Bopp aus Büdingen 2016 Gutachter: Prof. Dr. Frauke Kraas Prof. Dr. Peter Dannenberg Tag der mündlichen Prüfung: 29.06.2016 Table of contents List of figures...............................................................................................................6 List of images...............................................................................................................6 List of boxes..................................................................................................................8 List of abbreviations....................................................................................................9 Acknowledgements....................................................................................................10 I Zusammenfassung der Studie ...............................................................................11 II Abstract ..................................................................................................................11 1. Derivations.............................................................................................................13 1.1 Contextualization of the research.................................................................................................13 1.1.1 Definitions............................................................................................................................13 1.1.2 Research matter and relevance.............................................................................................15 1.1.3 Research questions and objectives........................................................................................19 1.1.4 Anticipated outcomes............................................................................................................21 1.2 State of research...........................................................................................................................22 2. Theoretical approach and literature review........................................................26 2.1.1 New Social Movements in the Thai context ........................................................................28 2.1.2 Traditions of social movements – a brief discussion............................................................30 2.1.3 The 'newness' of New Social Movements.............................................................................34 2.1.4 Collective identity and New Social Movements...................................................................36 2.2 Identity and motivation related with movements.........................................................................39 2.2.1 Understanding the concept of identity .................................................................................40 2.2.2 The social identity perspective..............................................................................................42 2.2.3 About individualistic and collectivist societies.....................................................................45 2.2.4 Self-determination Theory – a psychological approach to stakeholder motivations............46 2.2.5 When simplicity motivates lifestyle aspirations – voluntary simplicity by Kasser..............50 2.3 Approaches to consumption and food..........................................................................................51 2.3.1 Consumer society and the individual consumer...................................................................52 2.3.2 Reflections on food...............................................................................................................56 2.4 Disentangling the rural-urban divide............................................................................................61 2.4.1 The return of the rural into the urban space..........................................................................63 2.4.2 Urban gardening movements................................................................................................66 2.5 The inclusion of sustainable farming practices in Thailand.........................................................73 3 2.5.1 The concept of organic farming and the role of international bodies...................................74 2.5.2 Further practices and adaptations of the organic farming concept.......................................76 2.5.3 The 'Sufficiency Economy' philosophy and its propagation through Thailand's King.........77 2.5.4 'Small is beautiful' – an excursus on Buddhist Economics after E.F. Schumacher..............79 2.6 Organic food movements in Bangkok – approaching the local scope of the study......................81 2.6.1 The study area.......................................................................................................................81 2.6.2 Thailand's agricultural characteristics and food issues.........................................................91 3. Conceptualisation..................................................................................................98 3.1 Theories underlying the research................................................................................................100 3.2 Conceptual scheme and elements of the study...........................................................................103 3.2.1 Research design .................................................................................................................104 3.2.2 Research questions..............................................................................................................105 3.3 Tools to approach the organic movements.................................................................................106 3.3.1 Method sets used.................................................................................................................107 3.3.2 Methods in practice.............................................................................................................111 3.3.3 Data material ......................................................................................................................113 3.4 Limitations to the methods and ethical considerations...............................................................114 3.5 Joining conceptualisation with the empirical practice................................................................115 4. Outcomes from the empirical analysis: Bangkok's organic food movements117 4.1 General findings..........................................................................................................................118 4.1.1 Setting and scope of the organic movements......................................................................119 4.1.2 Structure and organisation of the organic movement in Bangkok......................................121 4.2 Organic farming in Thailand......................................................................................................123 4.2.1 Shared objectives with variety of approaches.....................................................................123 4.2.2 Re-emergence of organic farming......................................................................................124 4.2.3 Models for the organic stakeholders...................................................................................132 4.2.4 Recent trends.......................................................................................................................134 4.2.5 Self-reliance, self-sufficiency.............................................................................................138 4.2.6 The impact of the Sufficiency Economy concept...............................................................141 4.3 The stakeholders in the organic movements...............................................................................145 4.3.1 Impulse from a variety of stakeholders...............................................................................146 4.3.2 Stakeholders, descriptive....................................................................................................150 4.3.3 Pioneers in the organic scene..............................................................................................152 4.3.4 Motivations for engaging in organic activity......................................................................155 4.3.5 The organic consumers.......................................................................................................159 4.4 Structural settings of the organic movements.............................................................................168 4.4.1 Farmer's and the rural situation...........................................................................................168 4 4.4.2 The NGO scene...................................................................................................................173 4.4.3 The mega-urban environment.............................................................................................175 4.4.4 Policies and the dominance of major companies................................................................178 4.4.5 Food and health...................................................................................................................184 4.4.6 Consumer