This article seeks to examine the social construction of ‘biocontrol’ as a credible alternative to conventional pesticide use in viticulture production in Burgundy, France. Basing our analysis on a series of interviews with representatives of the key groups involved in the crop protection sector in France, we describe a dynamic that has emerged with respect to the development and justification of biocontrol products as a crop protection strategy. The key players within this dynamic are the State, the agricultural chemical companies, and the input distributors and crop advisors. The State has introduced positive incentives to encourage companies to develop new biocontrol products and negative incentives to compel agricultural input dealers and crop advisors to promote those products. The agricultural chemical companies are introducing new biocontrol materials based on the notion that these products can eventually replace more dangerous pesticides. The input dealers and crop advisors, finally, are compelled by the State to recommend alternatives to conventional pesticides, but generally believe the new biocontrol products are ineffective and so do little to promote their use. When they do, they typically recommend older products that have been recently reclassified as biocontrol materials.

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农药替代使用的社会建构：勃艮第葡萄栽培中的生物防治研究

本文旨在研究“生物防治”的社会建构，以作为法国勃艮第酿酒业生产中常规农药使用的可靠替代品。在对法国作物保护部门主要团体的代表进行一系列访谈的基础上，我们分析了在作为作物保护战略的生物防治产品的开发和合理化方面出现的动态。在这种动态中，关键人物是国家，农业化学公司以及投入品的分销商和农作物顾问。纽约州采取了积极的鼓励措施来鼓励公司开发新的生物防治产品，并采取了消极的措施来强迫农业投入品经销商和农作物顾问推广这些产品。农用化学公司正在基于这种产品最终可以替代更危险的农药的理念引入新的生物防治材料。最后，纽约州强迫投入物的交易商和作物顾问推荐常规农药的替代品，但通常认为新的生物防治产品无效，因此对促进其使用几乎无济于事。当他们这样做时，他们通常会推荐最近被重新分类为生物防治材料的较旧产品。