Objective:

To analyze how social innovation (materialized as cocoa women organizations) and the territorial governance processes that support the actions, contribute to the rescue of the social and identarian elements of cocoa. The same is for the valorization of the female participation in agriculture and in to reach for alternatives to improve life conditions of agriculture actors on the Chontalpa region in Tabasco, Mexico.

Methodology:

Study case methodology was used. It was applied to two organizations of women-led cocoa producers. Both organizations are constituted and led by women from the Grijalva region in Tabasco. Study-case methodology was built through a series of in-depth semi-structured interviews, conducted by the end of 2019, to the leaders and other collaborators of the studied organizations.

Results:

The women-lead cocoa producer’s organizations are forms of social innovation that has resulted in added benefit to cocoa products, in the strengthening of the collective decision-making mechanisms and in the revalorization of the female workforce and leadership in the agri-food industry.

Limitations:

It is needed for the approach to be applied to more female lead cocoa-producers organizations of the region, which can help us gather additional and in-depth knowledge of the impact of the social innovation strategies in the territories.

Conclusion:

These study cases represent a social and economic phenomenon that allows us to understand the concept of social innovation and where it is possible to identify those elements and factors that contribute to improving the living conditions of women in agricultural communities.

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