The honey production in Mexico is a relevant activity of the livestock subsector, due to the generation of jobs and income in the agricultural sector, as well as its contribution of foreign exchange. In the period from 2005 to 2015 the average annual production was 58 thousand tons, which fluctuated between 55 and 62 thousand tons. This has placed Mexico as the eighth largest producer in the world and the third exporting country.
International centres of excellence (ICE) in which foreign research organizations are attracted to developing and emerging countries via dedicated funding schemes to support technological catching-up and strengthening of innovation systems, can have benefits for both host countries and their international research partners through knowledge spill-overs and business opportunities.
This paper analyses intermediary organisations in developing economy agricultural clusters. The paper critically engages with a growing narrative in studies of intermediaries that have stressed the ownership structure of intermediaries as a key driver for enabling knowledge transfer, inter-firm learning and upgrading of small producers in clusters. Two case studies of Latin American clusters are presented and discussed.