Organics consumption from a sociological perspective: Analyzing a specialty market in florianópolis-sc

Abstract

In order to contribute to the comprehension of the current situation of organic markets, this research investigates a prominent case at Florianopolis: Cantinho Especial Market. The methodology employed in this study involved six months of analysis of the market's institutional website (fan page) in a social network, eight months of unsystematic observations at the market and nine interviews with agents both from supply and demand. We argue here that recurrent categories used in sociological research on organic markets, such as political consumerism and ecological ethics, are sparser among this market participant agents. Instead of these recurrent categories, we realize that organics are in the display window acting as decoys to a distinctive symbolic exchanges market. These symbolic trades when combined together reflect a lifestyle marked by the praise of the exoticism and the cosmopolitanism.