Paper short abstract:

The paper addresses the intertwining and coproduction of normative and technological strands in politics of natural resource extraction. It looks at the integration of argan oil which is produced in a biosphere in Morocco and is the most expensive nutritional oil worldwide today in the world market.

Paper long abstract:

The paper addresses the intertwining and coproduction of normative and technological strands in politics of natural resource extraction. It is explored how the integration of a forestal resource in the global economy by means of normative and technological appropriation is associated with the delegation of responsibility for its conservation and the sustainability of extraction management to local use rights holders. In the process, so is argued, such entanglements are induced to transform a local product into an exploitable global commodity as a niche product.

The case study looks at the emergence of argan oil at the world market. Argan oil is the most expensive nutritional oil worldwide today and also used in pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry. It is produced out of the fruits of the argan tree which is endemic to southwest Morocco forming a unique forestal ecosystem. Nowadays argan is endowed with a normative framework that includes its legal protection as a global good in form of a UNESCO biosphere reserve; a legal concept that allows the production of the premium product required by the world market and the legal labels of a fair traded organic product with certifications and protected geographical indication (PGI). Such framework positions argan oil in an economy of solidarity and equity which also appeals to the consumer in the industrialized world. It is analyzed how specific configurations of inventories of knowledge, legal repertoires and technologies have materialized and what social consequences in terms of access and property rights they involve.