The Global Jatropha Hype: Drivers and Consequences of the Boom and Bust of a Wonder Crop

This special issue aims to collect case studies regarding the global Jatropha hype, which analyze in detail the boost and bust of this wonder crop in the context of different countries and under different business models. We will focus, in particular, on who created the hype (including the role of the media); the success of Jatropha producers in acquiring land (and how they managed to win against competing land claims); the characteristics of the investors and what they did do to promote their ideas and investment plans); as well as the consequences for local groups, national economies, and the environment.

To the extent that Jatropha production has indeed ‘boosted’ (and is now occupying considerable areas of land) there are basic questions that require scrutiny: what business models are used and what are current patterns of benefit sharing? In cases where investors have moved away from Jatropha, what were the reasons for this bust, and how was this framed? What happened to the land, and what kind of transformations have taken place instead (such inquiries have to account for the perspectives of local actors as well)? Looking at the Jatropha hype (or hypes regarding other wonder crops that, in the end, did not materialize), what can we learn? What enabled Jatropha to become so hyped? What narrative was behind the hype? What remains after the hype has gone, and how can new fads of the same ilk be prevented?