Prospects for Commercialisation of an Alaska Native Wild Resource as a Commodity Crop

Joshua Kellogg, Clyde Higgs and Mary Ann Lila
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Joshua Kellogg: Joshua Kellogg is with the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champagne, USA
Clyde Higgs: Clyde Higgs is Vice President, Castle & Cooke, LLC, North Carolina, USA
Mary Ann Lila: Mary Ann Lila is David H. Murdock Distinguished Professor and Director, Plants for Human Health Institute, North Carolina State University, North Carolina, USA

Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation in Emerging Economies, 2011, vol. 20, issue 1, 77-101

Abstract: The emerging research evidence regarding functional food health benefits, coupled with the modern rise in degenerative and lifestyle-related health conditions, has created a growing market in the United States: the super-fruit. Wild berries, which contain bioactive phytochemicals with demonstrated efficacy against metabolic syndrome, have fulfilled important nutritional, medicinal, and social roles in Native American/Alaska Native lifestyles for generations. In this article, a SWOT analysis was used to explore the opportunities and obstacles for native development of wild Alaskan berries as a commercial product. On one hand, the novelty, market appeal and abundance of these phytochemically enriched berries suggest an entrepreneurial prospect for native communities. On the other hand, historical traditions typically dictate community ownership of the wild indigenous berries, and a natural inclination to protect common resources is prevalent in most communities. The factors that influence this complex juxtaposition between internal culture and external development are highlighted.

Keywords: Alaska Native; berry; super-fruit; CDFI; commercialisation; SWO (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:jouent:v:20:y:2011:i:1:p:77-101

DOI: 10.1177/097135571002000104

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