Knowledge Sharing, Absorptive Capacity and Innovation in the Brazilian Apple Production Chain

An innovative and highly technological spirit characterizes the Brazilian agribusiness sector. This sector is important not only for generating wealth but also for being responsible for the movement of other economy's sectors. In this context, knowledge sharing has been treated as an antecedent of innovation, but not always considering the role of absorptive capacity. In the agribusiness context, this relationship is still less explored. Thus, in this paper, we propose a structural equations model to analyze the relationship between knowledge sharing, absorptive capacity and its influence on innovation in the Brazilian apple production chain. To validate the model and the proposed hypotheses, we use a quantitative-descriptive methodology, empirically investigated based on a survey. We apply a questionnaire with 166 actors from the apple value chain, from the production and packing- houses segments of Southern Brazil. The results obtained provided strong support for hypothesized relationships, which demonstrated that the sharing of knowledge significantly influences innovation in the Brazilian apple production chain. However, must be integrated with the absorptive capacity to maximize its effects.