The Role of Dominant Institutional Logics in the Meat Industry: An Analysis for Understanding Barriers to Change

This thesis investigates the role of dominant institutional logics in shaping organisational behaviour and decision-making within the meat industry, focusing on the barriers to change and the emergence of competing logics advocating sustainability, ethical concerns, and public health. Drawing on institutional theory, it examines how entrenched practices, cultural norms, and regulatory frameworks create habitual patterns that guide industry actors, reinforce conformity, and sustain resistance to innovation and sustainability initiatives. Through a qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews with participants across the meat value chain, the study identifies key factors that maintain the dominance of established logics and generate organizational and sector-wide resistance to competing logics. At the same time, participants’ awareness of ethical, environmental, and market pressures highlights underlying tensions and contradictions, suggesting that, despite strong resistance, gradual transformation may be possible.