A comprehensive study of the growth, potential, and limits of
transnational eco-certification in China and the implications for other
emerging economies.
China has long prioritized economic growth over environmental
protection. But in recent years, the country has become a global leader
in the fight to save the planet by promoting clean energy, cutting air
and water pollution, and developing a system of green finance. In
Certifying China, Yixian Sun explores the potential and limits of
transnational eco-certification in moving the world's most populous
country toward sustainable consumption and production. He identifies the
forces that drive companies from three sectors--seafood, palm oil, and
tea--to embrace eco-certification. The success of eco-certification, he
says, will depend on the extent to which it wins the support of domestic
actors in fast-growing emerging economies.
The assumption of eco-certification is that demand along the supply
chain can drive businesses to adopt good practices for social,
environmental, and economic sustainability by specifying rules for
production, third-party verification, and product labeling. Through case
studies drawn from extensive fieldwork and mixed methods, Sun traces the
processes by which certification programs originating from the Global
North were introduced in China and gradually gained traction. He finds
that the rise of eco-certification in the Chinese market is mainly
driven by state actors, including government-sponsored industry
associations, who seek benefits of transnational governance for their
own development goals. The book challenges the conventional wisdom that
the Chinese state has little interest in supporting transnational
governance, offering novel insights into the interaction between state
and non-state actors in earth system governance in emerging economies.
