(a) Mercado el 100

Mercado el 100 is a social organization that stands out as a market for organic, ecologic and local products. It began its operations in October 2010 and was the first to obtain a physical and public space for the exchange and interaction between farmers and consumers in Mexico City, with the idea of: “Bringing it to the streets, to where people are. For the project not to be elitist, but rather that any person who is walking down the street could have access and grab from a stall and taste something” (A. F., June 19th, 2014). Participative consumption highlights the role that civil society plays in facilitating access to public property goods with the aim of social use, and the creation of shareable infrastructure and collective platforms (^{Unión Europea, 2014}). Being established in public plazas is one of the aspects that has been most difficult to maintain for Mercado el 100, particularly at the beginning, when it still didn’t have a base of consumers to help them show the relevance of this initiative: “At the beginning it was very difficult because nobody supported us, we asked the Delegación Cuauhtémoc to support the project and they said no” (^{Mercado el 100, 2012}). Facing the lack of collaboration from local authorities, the strategy of the founders was to begin with the support from private institutions: “The first year of Mercado el 100 was with institutional [private] support because people didn’t know us and could not support us. We knocked on many doors and this implied a lot of work. Because we obtained the support of more than 30 organizations, institutions and embassies, we could create a kind of front against the Delegación Cuauhtémoc and before the City’s Government, to say to them: ‘This project is worth it, we are working for local consumption for producers and consumers, and we need to get support’” (A. F., June 19th, 2014).

Once the necessary collaboration was attained, Mercado el 100 was established on Plaza Río de Janeiro, in the Roma neighborhood, and had stability for approximately two years and ten months, during which it had a permission to operate that had to be renewed every three months. At this plaza, it began to develop its consumer base, those that could go as a family, with children, since the plaza had a playground for them; however, they were displaced from this place: “Recently we had a problem with the Delegation because they took from us the plaza where we were at [Río de Janeiro]. From one day to the next, they came up with a new vision for the Delegation, and they decided not to allow this type of activity in plazas anymore; they removed us from there without reassigning us to another place. Then there was a protest from some of the consumers through social media and the issue was fixed in less than a week” (A.F., June 19th, 2014). Thus, it was shown that the support and the participation of consumers were decisive to guarantee the permanence of the market; this happened because the project had been totally adopted by people in the neighborhood. The suppliers interviewed resented the change in location that resulted from this problem, but they were very satisfied in having support from their consumers:

“Those who know the product did follow us [to the new location], but most are new people. There are other [selling] spaces but they charge [the farmer] too much: from the amount we sell, they take 20 % and our earnings stay there” (E. R. E., May 31st, 2014).

“When the Delegation wanted to remove us, it was very clear that the consumers are interested, paying attention and willing to say: ‘No, Delegation. Because they are not tianguis, they are not here to sell Chinese products; it is an effort for production, a labor of education, a direct relationship between consumer and producer, for the prices to become cheaper [in comparison to the certified organic foods], so that the product’s information is first-hand and the freshness is the best’” (A. G. M., June 1st, 2014).

With the participation of consumers, Mercado el 100 carved a path in a social lattice related to popular supply, where ^{Torres (2003)} warns about the controversy around the issue of ownership of tianguis and street markets - which have the characteristic of being social organizations - to point out that the responsibilities of the local government, the delegations and the municipalities are limited when facing the property schemes that these can hold. Mercado el 100 has given place to the establishment of relationships between farmers and urban consumers, by developing a commercialization platform that generates effects that coincide with those of participative consumption: improving the interaction and social cohesion, and facilitating the access to high-quality products (^{Unión Europea, 2014}).

Mercado el 100 originated thinking of the need to strengthen local producers to contribute to the sustainable development of the country (^{Mercado el 100, 2012}), at least of the region where it is established; we will not delve into the description of the processes that farmers carry out in food production. Only some of the principles of the participative guarantee system with which they comply to be part of the group of suppliers that offer products are mentioned: 1) Healthy: free of chemical and harmful substances. Fresh and seasonal products; 2) Local: all the products can be found in places located at a distance no greater than 100 miles (160 kilometers) around Mexico City; 3) Clean: products cultivated with an ecologic approach, that is, clean and lasting production practices that favor soil fertility and biodiversity, do not pollute the land or the water; and 4) Fair: only small-scale producers or organized groups can sell in the market, and retailer intermediaries are excluded (^{Mercado el 100, 2013a}). Mercado el 100 has been flexible with regard to the criterion of local products, as one of its suppliers expresses:

It was a challenge because according to the criteria there shouldn’t be [a distance] greater than 100 miles around the DF, but then, how can you find cacao around DF if there is none? It is a very important product, many people eat chocolate. In the city there is no mango or bananas, this criterion cannot be closed, it has been opened (A. G. M., June 1st, 2014).

There has been an attempt to broaden or complete the variety in the offer, thinking that the consumers could make most of their purchasing there, but, compared to the foods that are found in a supermarket: “We have the bad habit of eating everything, all year round. [Each product has its own season] it is about creating awareness in this respect, that this seasonality should be respected; not forcing the land or the people who produce. The producers try to explain it [to the consumers]” (A.C., June 19th, 2014). Mercado el 100 is defined as a place for knowledge exchange that offers fresh products, and at the same time an educational program that seeks to promote lifestyles that are more responsible towards the environment and people; the program takes into account the interest from suppliers to communicate certain issues through workshops that are offered on the days that the market is set up (for example, home vegetable gardens, recycling). “The idea is that you not only attend with the plan to shop, but rather that you also go there to learn” (A. C., June 19th, 2014). The suppliers carry out a good part of the educational part when explaining to consumers aspects related to the products they offer, whether in the workshops or else in their interactions, when the exchange happens. The price of products is one of the things that is most frequently explained to consumers, particularly the new ones:

One of the frequent complaints is that: ‘organic products are more expensive’. Well, yes, we are selling tomato for 30 pesos and if you go to a different market you can get it for 5 pesos. It is more expensive. I always explain that, if you think about it from another point of view, if they look at it from another side, they will find the easiest answer: why are conventional tomatoes cheaper than organic ones? Once you think of it this way, it turns out that the ecosystem is the one that pays: the rivers, the lakes, the forests. The farmer also pays for it; some die from cancer, leukemia, from all the chemicals they use. Lastly, we pay for it, the consumers, because you get sick from one thing or another, because of those tomatoes that cost 5 pesos per kilo. That’s when they understand it: we all pay for these cheap things (J. R.G., May 31st, 2014).

Mercado el 100 has made farmers who participate in it visible, in front of the city’s population, and it has given them a voice to share their knowledge:

In a store the employee doesn’t know the articles he/she is selling. We have been selling organic products to stores such as Green Corner for some time, and what happened to us there, for example, with beans, was: ‘Hey, they have weevils’, and they would return the product. Mercado el 100 has given us the opportunity for the product to have a face, to explain to people many things: if the beans didn’t have weevils I would question whether it’s organic because then a chemical had to be added to conserve it for many years. Another example, avocado: ‘No, it has a defect’; ‘Well, [we explain] it is because the tree produces different shapes’. ‘Oh, but I don’t want it because it has that’; ‘This is a small pest; you want it with none of this? Then you need to put chemicals on it so it doesn’t get it, if you take this part off, all the rest is excellent’. It is important to explain to people that the product is not necessarily bad because it has a defect. Sometimes they want an organic product, with conventional standards, but these are things that the stores don’t explain, we have the opportunity to explain to consumers (A.R.R., June 8th, 2014).

At Mercado el 100 direct communication with farmers has generated trust, even in the case of not needing a certification seal, although some suppliers do have one in the interest of placing all of their production in other selling spaces.

A criterion of trust is used and it is something quite important in organic markets. You handle the information and get it to the consumers, above all, and we are open to them visiting [the production site] anytime they want. They don’t see us as a common seller, and a personal relationship is developed. Last year we produced around 700 kilos of pear, a volume that we could not move here [to Mercado el 100], so we had to resort to selling at established stores, and for that we need certification (E. C. J., June 1st, 2014).

Mercado el 100 contributes to building and maintaining trust between consumers and farmers by organizing visits to production zones; through social networks, the invitation is extended to consumers and any person interested. Likewise, the consumers can agree on visits directly with farmers, who have the openness to receive them.

[Consumers] visit us at our land, we invite them to walk down paths, to go into the forest. They love going and we are always ready to receive them. When it is a more complete package, about teaching them agriculture, we set a very affordable fee. We get visits from 5-year-old children, universities, researchers, schools; we visit the plots, they harvest, we sell to them. We are at the best stage of our life (A. L., June 8th, 2014).

In participative consumption trust is the link that allows establishing the connections, exchanging information and maintaining close relationships (^{Unión Europea, 2014}); one of the lessons in common to the different schemes is that the golden rule to operate implies that clients have the freedom to make many questions and inquire until their doubts are cleared, in a process where trust is built (^{Bostman and Rogers, 2010}); in addition, this allows transcending the assumptions imposed by homogenization of the food supply and consumption patterns that perpetuate the power of groups that monopolize the heritage - tangible and intangible - of peoples, from the dominion they exercise, among other ways, through brands, patents, certifications and knowledge centers (^{Santos, 2013}). A process of this type is shown through the experience of a supplier:

In the area of chocolate we have very little education: the bulk of children in DF think that a chocolate is purchased in any supermarket; that it is associated to a little doll that comes out on TV; that it melts in your mouth. The parents, on average 40 years old, say to me; “Hey, how much is a chocolate?” - “40 pesos” - “Oh, that’s expensive”. “Let’s see, sir, what kind of chocolate do you usually buy?” - “Look, in the supermarket or in Sanborn’s I find 80 % chocolates” - “Yes, the 80 % chocolates that you find at Sanborn’s, in a very elegant and pretty package, are not chocolates, they are candy”. “No, no, it says 80 %”. “Yes, [we explain] but it is 80 % cocoa, not cacao, and the difference is this… and the process is this…”. “Then, you tell me: whether after a tree takes 7 years to give the first harvest, and then after the farmer waits for a year so that he can have work only two or three months, and after it ferments for 7 days, and dries in another 7 days, depending on the sun, and then it is toasted, husked by hand, and chocolate is made with the specifications of the needs of the consumer, do you still think that 40 pesos for 100 grams is expensive?” Then people say: “I didn’t know that was done, and I didn’t know that it took so long, I didn’t know that the chocolate that I buy at the supermarket has those elements and that’s why it makes me fatter”. It is a lack of information, not to say ignorance. However, one of our functions is precisely that, in addition to getting the product to you, telling you what you are eating and why you should eat it (A.G.M., June 1st, 2014).

The vision of Mercado el 100 has to do with the rescue of a Pre-Hispanic custom represented by tianguis (street markets), considered not only spaces for the exchange of merchandise, but also of ideas and culture, which made them sites for interaction and social cohesion (^{Mercado el 100, 2013a}). This market is included in certain cultural activities:

In the activities at Corredor Cultural Roma- Condesa, there are conferences. We spoke about how we are related to gastronomy by virtue of what has happened, of how homogenization of food has led us to lose health, to lose awareness, to lose the origin of things. And, interest suddenly arises at those talks: it can be seen that people are worried, that they ask themselves and say ‘guide me’, and debate takes place. This motivates people to become incorporated to ways of eating that are more natural. It is a health alternative and my own decision; I can decide about what I eat, I have power over that (A. G. M., June 1st, 2014).

The reflection and dialogue also work for the consumer to provide the supplier with information that helps to understand their needs and to continue within their preferences. According to ^{Gordillo and Jiménez (2006)}, the existence of a broad gap between industrial agriculture - characteristic of large distribution through supermarkets - and small-scale agriculture - family, traditional - is related to access to information, or the lack of it; many farmers do not have market options for their products or do not know what and how it is convenient to produce. According to the suppliers, with their comments, consumers give them a market reference that serves to guarantee the quality of their products, analyze prices, and to make production decisions, among other things:

It allows me to have first-hand information and to know whether my product is accepted or not. There is a live market study every Sunday, which people gift me when they make the relationship during the sale. When there is no dialogue and you don’t know what they are expecting from your product, the efforts are directed elsewhere (A. G. M., June 1st, 2014).

The clientele requests from us basil, or varieties that we don’t know about. We grow them, work with them and they are sold. This market is wonderful (A. L., June 8th, 2014).

The close relationship between consumers and farmers contributes to generating a pleasant environment within the Mercado, where people find the opportunity to interact as a result of the trust that is seen in the way people are treated. According to ^{Bostman and Rogers (2010)}, the motivation from people who sell through the platforms of participative consumption is a combination between generating income and knowing or interacting with people.

Really, this is about earnings, but also empathy. We feel at ease, our clients too. We sell to large trading companies, but we would not abandon [this market] for anything. It’s a synergy where we all learn from each other (C. F. M., June 1st, 2014).

The consumer-producer relationship is a wealth at this place. This relationship enriches you, commits you, and gives clients more security (A. G. M., June 1st, 2014).

Also, there is trust in the relationship that Mercado el 100 maintains with its suppliers, and they come to develop a stable group and developed “a sort of family” that has not grown too much, among other reasons, to avoid creating competition among suppliers, in addition to the limits there are because they are established in the public space (^{Mercado el 100, 2013b}). There are aspects related to transparency and clarity of functions that have contributed to maintain the relationship of trust; the suppliers contribute a monthly fee to cover the expenses of the Mercado el 100 operation and, at the end of the year, a summary of activities and an expense balance is made. The organizing team is not involved in the sales processes of the suppliers: “We are not a trading company, we are not involved in the sale-purchase; we are only the platform” (A.F., June 19th, 2014).

In the success that Mercado el 100 has attained thus far, there are appropriate highs and lows because it is immerse in a country and in a city that presents it with difficulties related to the lack of transparency in the management of the use of public spaces. Farmers, historically, are also faced with many difficulties to develop their activities. The organizers from Mercado el 100 were asked whether they considered that the effort they perform to generate the offer of sustainable products was in balance with that of their consumers: “I think that it is, because getting up on Sunday to go get your supplies at a market in the Roma neighborhood, when you don’t live there, is an additional effort. And under conditions that are not of the same comfort than a supermarket: you don’t have a parking lot or a man to carry your bags, here you don’t just walk three aisles and find everything. Here, you do need some extra willingness” (A. F., June 19th, 2014). The suppliers were also consulted and, for example, they were of the opinion that:

I don’t know if they think of the farmer as another one that they should support, or whether they know that we are like a species in extinction that they have to take care of (P.B., May 31st, 2014).

Mercado el 100 contributes significantly to the farmers continuing with the development of their activity, as it facilitates recovering the resources that they invest in production:

In agriculture there is a lot of work and it is hard to have money; that is the hardest, to withstand the lack of fluidity. Here, the market allows us to have liquidity; we recover the resource quickly thanks to the consumers’ purchases (A.R.R., June 8th, 2014).

Mercado el 100 develops activities directed at generating the backing of consumers, when providing them with information to contribute to the growth of this project:

At Mercado el 100 the coordination has worked a lot on the promotion, using social networks. There is a lack of reinforcement, but the promotion work they’ve done has been determinant: having an internet page, every week they send the program of activities, invite consumers to visit us, they announce when there is a new product. This part is fundamental and I think this is why other markets have not developed (E.C.J., June 1st, 2014).

The Mercado el 100 team was consulted with regard to getting more participation by increasing the number of consumers: “If there were more conscious people, it would be simpler. But, there is no curiosity, no questioning: ‘why do you go to the supermarket?’ ‘What do you mean why? Because I have to buy food and there is no other option’. What there is a lack of is knowledge, or it is not available” (A. F., June 19th, 2014). The suppliers also consider that there is a problem of lack of questioning that prevents new consumers from going to Mercado el 100 to purchase food:

It is something cultural and educational, about how curious you are. If you have not been educated in a way that you question, well, it is very difficult for you to ask questions (P.B., May 31st, 2014).

Both the organizers and the suppliers confirm that the purchasing power defines the profile of the consumers at Mercado el 100, in addition to the attention they pay to aspects related to their health: “The consumer profile is, more or less, middle class. There are a lot of people between 30 and 40 years old, where both work, they have some extra income, or fewer expenses. There are also older people, who have already been through an illness or who have some prohibited foods, and that’s why they look for us” (A. C., June 19th, 2014).

It is quite common for people to come to the market because of illness. Speaking with consumers, you find that there are people who’ve had cancer, leukemia, hypertension, diabetes and, when they realize the problem is their diet, they start to come. It is very common, to the degree that, I can tell you that more than 50 % [of the consumers] have arrived this way. It is a higher economic level than the average and also a higher education level (J. R. G., May 31st, 2014).

The farmers have also been driven to natural production because of health issues:

I had a respiratory problem; my asthma condition was because of an allergy problem. I researched about allergies and I found that one of the main problems was diet, but, where do I get healthy food? A friend said to me, ‘there is Chapingo’s Organic Tianguis’, and that’s where I began to buy vegetables and fruit. Before I didn’t produce it, my profession is totally different, I am an electronics engineer. When I was in Chapingo, I went to all the courses, learned something about what I was eating. We had to learn to produce from scratch, from course to course, and we are still learning. I began with stevia because my father is diabetic (J. R. G., May 31st, 2014).

With the experience of Mercado el 100 the importance of social organization is highlighted; one that does not participate in production or in marketing, but which is capable of coordinating efforts with which it contributes to the responsibility and the risks that are assumed, almost completely, by farmers with the aim of producing and distributing foods. It is an intermediary with characteristics that find correspondence with participative consumption: 1) operating with transparency; 2) ensuring that the connection between consumers and farmers, in this case, is through a physical and public space, and through the use of technological networks; 3) exchanging information and knowledge; 4) building trust and community; and 5) not imposing criteria but rather proposing them, dialoguing about them and negotiating them if required.

(b) Urban consumers

We consider an approximation to the opinions of urban consumers suggested by ^{Salgado (2015)} through the technique of focus groups, with 10 groups of six to seven people each, carried out in January to July, 2012. In total, 42 consumers were interviewed; the main characteristics that they shared was being residents of Mexico City and being part of the middle socioeconomic class; among these, the tendency to go to supermarkets was observed as the main practice for obtaining supplies, and some manifested their habit of paying for the advantages and comforts that the supermarket offers and low willingness to change it for a different supplying space. In the focus group sessions, three questions were set out that had the objective of identifying aspects that allowed promoting the willingness and ability of urban consumers who get supplies at supermarkets to relate and participate in supply options that invite them to interact with farmers. The comments that are presented were classified in the following way: 1) Recurring comments: short expressions made by most of the participants, in all the focus groups, which allowed reaching conclusions about trends in the opinions and preferences of those interviewed (^{Morgan, 1996}); and 2) Specific comments: expressed by the minority of participants and not in all focus groups, which provided more information and contribute aspects of interest to delve into and broaden the analysis (^{Salgado, 2015}). The questions are used as a structure in the sample and analysis of comments in this section; first, the recurring comments are presented, and then the specific opinions selected to delve into the analysis.

1. Are you interested in consuming fruit that is produced without using chemicals?

Before stating whether they were interested, or not, in consuming a food that was produced without using chemicals, the consumers realized the lack of information they have about this and they deepened this reflection:

^{Restrepo and Phillips (1985)} warned that each year the Mexican family was slowly transforming from domestic production unit to consumption unit, and noted that, generally, in a traditional economy food quality is easy to control, since most of it is elaborated at home, but with industrialization of food the population loses control and in general doesn’t have the information necessary to optimize its consumption patterns. They highlighted that the lack of information and control by consumers is worsened by the distortions that publicity causes, its intensity and impact on the population being such that it determines, to a great extent, consumption habits. ^{Mauleón and Rivera (2009)} highlight the tendency in consumers to increasingly depend on the products that come from the industry to satisfy one of their basic needs, the diet; the comfort of getting processed foods could entail the loss of culinary abilities and of cultural heritage that gastronomy represents.

Some of those interviewed recognized that the foods they consume do contain chemicals:

The fact of accepting to consume foods without considering whether they have chemicals could be related to the idea of having to pay more for an organic food:

The origin of the overprice that is associated to foods that are identified as organic is related to practices that have arisen in developed countries, for example: 1) Alternative markets that promote schemes of economic, social and environmental relationships to address the disadvantages that the international commercial system represents for developing countries, establishing connections between producers from these countries with consumers from developed countries (^{WFTO, 2009}), willing to pay between 10 and 20 % more for a product with the same level of quality, if they are given guarantees about the social repercussions of their purchasing decision (^{Buendía et al., 2000}); and, 2) The “organic” label, which is a registered brand that belongs to the USA Department of Agriculture, developed in the interest of homogenizing the standards of the organic products in the export market (^{Lohr, 1998}). The certification is associated with patenting knowledge, brands and products, to connect them with legislation and the market, where consumers and farmers assume a good part of the cost that this implies, which is elevated by the infrastructure required. It should be mentioned that in the world there are various types of “organic agriculture”, identified with different names and guided by philosophies and cultivation methods that reflect the traditions and agricultural culture of the country of origin (^{Vallianatos, 2006}).

2. Think of your daily life, what are your main concerns?

The people interviewed communicated insistently the worry in relation to the work routine and the interest of stepping out of their dynamics to address other things that are important:

Their concerns regarding economic aspects are expressed:

A tendency is identified in the preoccupation by the urban consumer over health, but is associated to that of recognizing that they consume their foods “blindly”, because he/she doesn’t know what they contain or how they are produced, and considers there is no way of obtaining the information. This type of consumer could be more interested in information related to the prices of foods and the advantages that are offered by supermarkets, where they can get economic benefits. ^{Torres (2011)} explains that the large supermarket chains integrate into a single space almost all the dietary offer and, in order to capture consumers, between them they develop competition strategies based on: the advantages of the proximity of clients to the stores; broader service schedules; the inclusion of traditional departments such as tortilla-making, bakeries; the diversification of services (cash withdrawal, telephone payments, municipal charges); granting credit; and, in line with the issue at hand, the leadership in the food prices where offers represent a “price war”. According to the author, the pattern of supply that is supported by these strategies is reinforced by the consumption practices of the population which, especially in spaces that are demographically concentrated, show a strong tendency towards carrying out their purchases in a radius as nearby as possible; thus, it is recognized that the urban consumer makes decisions of supply based on criteria of location, functionality and economy. When getting supplies, according to these criteria, the consumer is immersed in the dynamics of competition of distribution companies that push him/her towards intensifying his/her volume of consumption and separate him/her from an economic relationship, or any other, with the producer or farmer (^{Torres, 2011}), which in addition, could make it difficult to consider criteria that have to do with his/her health. If the consumer were to make decisions about getting supplies by giving priority to criteria related to his/her health, this would mean that he/ she would make an effort to be better informed and, even if it not his/her objective, he/she could exercise participative consumption. The conflict expressed by some consumers regarding thinking of making a change (in general), but feeling that they risk economic aspects, shows that the economic pressure, in addition to the lack of information about their foods, could limit their possibilities of taking care of their health.

3. What themes or activities help you to dispel your worries, or to relax?

Activities related to culture and to recreation were mentioned. Also, activities that have to do with social action:

Participative consumption can be promoted with activities that coincide with the interests of recreation and socialization of people. At the individual level, a consumer could contribute with a proposal that invites to collective action where the personal reasons, or “micro” motives, could become “macro” conducts, insofar as they are socialized in public spaces. ^{Torres (2003)} indicates that markets, specifically food markets, in addition to being places for commercialization, are spaces for information exchange that places them at the center of a neighborhood’s or a town’s social life, and they constitute places of collective identity. Spaces like Mercado el 100 could be taken advantage of to reflect with the consumer about the relationship there is between food, environmental health and human health, and their stocking decisions; and to strengthen their ability to formulate questions, stemming from the relief found in a person-to-person relationship, in this case between consumers and farmers, who when taking part of participative consumption increase the degree of mutual commitment, with which the sustainability of agriculture and food systems is favored.