Table 2.

Strengths and potential weaknesses of the four breeding orientations

	Community-based breeding	Ecosystem-based breeding	Trait-based breeding	Corporate-based breeding
Strengths	• Integrative approach • Solidarity • Focus on collaboration • Respecting cultural values	• Ecological-systematic approach • Long-term perspective • Generalists • Serving ecosystem services	• Analytical-systematic approach • Detailed in-depth knowledge • Specialists	• Entrepreneurial • Competitive • Expertise in value chains • Clear business model • Ability to make large steps forward
Potential weaknesses	• Too small scale to ensure continuity • Inward focus • Too much focus on all complex relationships, not being able to move forward • Conservative and afraid of (socio-technical) innovation • Difficult to scale up/out	• Difficult to connect to currently dominant business model • Complex • Long-term profit orientation • Too broad and forgetting in-depth analysis • Forgetting the outliers • Forgetting the people	• Not always in connection with pluriformity in society • Too much focus on details and molecular oriented • Costly and thus dependent on patenting for return on investments • Dependent on industry for investments	• Too much driven by short term profit and the market • Mergers at the cost of diversity of players and crops • Path dependencies leading to monopoly • Lack of transparency and solidarity