Frequently Asked Questions
What are the goals for this research?
The primary goal of this research is to equip horticultural farmers in Iceland, Icelandic government policy makers, and academic/educational professionals with evidence-based understandings of the multifaceted context for horticultural production as it currently exists in Iceland. We strive to identify opportunities for various modes of expansion of the industry, the qualitative improvement of domestic produce, and the diversification of domestic produce on the market, as well as any particular limitations to these modes of expansion, improvement, and diversification. Expected outcomes are increased knowledge around successful cropping systems, growing methodologies, and marketing avenues for different forms of horticultural production in Iceland as well as an evidence-based approach to understanding farmer decision making and the basis for specific policy-making around horticultural production in Iceland.
Furthermore, a key part of this investigation is seeking to understand the particular factors and forms of Icelandic horticultural production which best ensure the sustainability of Icelandic agroecosystems, local/rural economies, and farmer and farmworker livelihoods.
Finally, we seek to equip beginning horticultural farmers with a data-driven, Iceland-specific schematic for most successfully entering the horticultural industry while providing a realistic assessment of the economic and ecological sustainability of various approaches to horticultural production in Iceland.
What is the academic approach in this investigation?
This research entails a geographical investigation into horticultural production in Iceland. A geographical approach to research seeks to understand the interactions between horticultural farmers in Iceland and the social-ecological environment in which they produce. This inquiry therefore analyzes the ways in which farmers and their operating environment affect each other and what these outcomes mean for decision making by farmers and government policy makers. This research additionally utilizes a food system approach to analyzing a farmer’s operating environment which investigates the biophysical, socioeconomic, and political context of horticultural production in Iceland insofar as it is embedded within broader national, regional, and international food system dynamics.
Our food system analytical framework utilizes a mixed-methods approach to this wide-ranging, longitudinal study which includes surveying, interviewing, on-farm/site observation, cropping system and soil analyses, and mapping.
When will the data collection occur?
Data collection for this research began in 2019 and will be completed in 2022.
Who is being asked to participate in this research?
The foundation of this research is data gathered directly from Iceland’s horticultural farmers who produce vegetables, fruit, or herbs. We seek to enroll all horticultural farmers in Iceland who produce edible produce commercially with the exception of those producers specializing in only potatoes or rutabega. If you are a horticultural farmer who has not yet been contacted by the research team and you wish to participate in the study, please contact us.
The investigation is also utilizing data gathered from and about the following groups:
domestic horticultural input suppliers
produce processors/wholesale distributors
retailers, restaurants, and consumers who specifically seek to purchase Icelandic produce
If you are a member of any of these groups and would like to participate in the study, we would like to hear from you. Find out how to participate here.
What are farmers being asked to do for the study?
Horticultural farmers in Iceland are being contacted by our research team. Farmers who have not yet been contacted and who wish to participate in the study should contact the research team to make sure you are eligible to participate in the study and that we have you on our contact list.
Horticultural farmers who agree to participate in the study are asked to complete an online survey in Icelandic or English language. The answers provided in this survey will be used to organize a set of followup interview questions specific to the farmer. These interviews will occur either at the farm or through online videoconference, as preferred by the farmer and as dictated by pandemic-related regulations around in-person meetings. Interviews will be conducted in English with the assistance of an Icelandic translator as determined by the preference of the farmer. Farmers who participate in the project will also be invited to participate in a farmer-to-farmer exchange day during summer 2022 at a horticultural farm in South Iceland.
How will my information and answers be used? And how will my privacy be protected?
While the responses you give during data collection are not anonymous to the primary investigator of the research, data handling is governed by very strict confidentiality procedures. All published findings stemming from the research will utilize only aggregated or coded data, never identifying individuals or businesses with particular statements or responses. In other words, your statements and information cannot be traced back to you based on publications stemming from this research.
Furthermore, all statements and responses given during the course of the study will be coded and stored in a separate database from identifying information. These procedures for data handling are very stringent and dictated by well established protocols at the University of California, Davis. More detail is available in the consent form which must be signed by participants prior to any data collection taking place.
What are the benefits of participating in this research?
While there is no direct benefit to farmers for taking part in this study, our intention is that the research will greatly benefit the horticultural industry in Iceland generally as we intend to share the results of the research through publications and through presentations to horticultural farmers, the academic community, Icelandic and EU government officials, and the general public in Iceland.
We hope this comprehensive research will also benefit consumers of Icelandic produce as it will inform the best ways of expanding and diversifying the domestic market for horticultural products. The publications will inform government policy makers regarding allocation of funding and resources for horticultural farmers as well as the formation of policies around regulations and support. Finally, new horticultural farmers entering the industry will be better positioned for success in their endeavors.
As the research is sponsored by public universities, research findings will be published in English and Icelandic language and made available to research participants at no charge. Horticultural farmers who participate in the study will also be invited to a farmer-to-farmer exchange day wherein initial research findings will be presented.
How will the results of the research be published and disseminated?
The results of the research and associated analysis will initially be published through a series of articles in English language, international academic journals over the two years following completion of data collection. A book based on the research will also be published in Icelandic and English.
Following completion of the data collection and analysis, public presentations of the research findings will be held in Iceland for farmers, government officials, educators/academics, and the general public.
Who is conducting this research?
Nicholas Ian Robinson is the primary investigator in this research and the data gathered will form the basis for his doctoral dissertation. He is a PhD candidate in Geography at the University of California, Davis and a visiting fellow and lecturer at the Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Iceland.
Nicholas has been growing vegetables, running crop trials, and developing cropping systems for intensive indoor and outdoor vegetable production at Gróðrarstöðin Reykjalundur in Grímsnes, Iceland for the last ten years. He has grown several dozen different vegetables for commercial sale in Iceland and he has experimented with over 100 varieties of these vegetables in a commercial production setting over the last decade, working to introduce new crops and varieties, novel growing methodologies, and creative marketing strategies for horticultural produce in Iceland.
More information about the research team can be found here.
How has the project been funded?
This project has been generously funded by the following organizations:
Geography Graduate Group, University of California, Davis
Department of Plant Sciences, University of California, Davis
Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Iceland
US-Iceland Student Fulbright
Leifur Eiriksson Foundation
American Scandinavian Foundation
Icelandic Ministry of Industry and Innovation