Translations, alliances, and betrayals

The case of the co-innovation of the creBIO 7 biotickicide in Uruguay

Abstract

Family farming must face complex socio-technical challenges to function, reproduce, and resist: it must co-innovate. This article presents an ongoing co-innovation (between livestock farmers and researchers) in Uruguayan family livestock farming: the tick biopesticide creBIO 7. A sociotechnical approach to innovation is used, particularly the sociology of translation (or actor-network theory), to describe and analyze the different phases of the biotickicide’s development. The problematization addresses the various forms the product takes and the multiple influences (technical, social, political) that shape it, along with the alliances, commitments, translations, and betrayals that occur throughout the process. This “socio-technical narrative” analyzes the work experience of an NGO, Batoví Instituto Orgánico-Uruguay (BIO-Uruguay), with agricultural producers, based on their technical reports, field observations, participant observation, and workshops carried out between 2015 and 2024. The main results highlight the “turbulent” and complex nature of co-innovation, the redefinitions of the experimental design resulting from observations by producers and BIO-Uruguay technicians, the scaling-up of its use, and the bottlenecks (barriers) in the process, particularly from the administration and laboratories. Co-innovation challenges researchers in their research practices and methodologies. The results show clues to innovate methodologically and develop evolutionary and flexible devices. Also, that when co-innovating with actors, it is possible to produce actionable scientific knowledge, which can be quickly or easily translated into concrete actions or practices.