Complementarities and persistence in innovation strategies: evidence from the Spanish agri-food sector using firm-level panel data

Abstract This paper examines the dynamics of innovation in the Spanish agri-food industry, focusing on the complementarity among different types of innovation, their persistence over time, and the role of internal innovation resources. Using panel data from the Spanish Technological Innovation Panel (PITEC) for the period 2008–2016, we examine twelve innovation categories—comprising both technological (product and process) and non-technological (organisational and marketing) dimensions—through dynamic random-effects probit models. Our results provide robust evidence of statistically significant positives interrelations, especially between product and process innovations, and between organisational and marketing innovations, and cross-linking between product and marketing and between process and organisation. These mutual reinforcements are particularly strong in firms with greater internal capabilities, underscoring the relevance of absorptive capacity and organisational readiness. We also find strong persistence in technological innovation, revealing path-dependent dynamics and the importance of stable innovation routines. In addition, internal R&D investment, capital formation, and marketing expenditure emerge as key enablers of innovation adoption. These findings carry important implications for innovation policy and management in traditional manufacturing sectors, highlighting the need to foster not only the initiation but also the strategic continuity and combination of innovation activities.