Farmers’ Cooperatives in the Eu: Policies, Strategies, and Organization

Abstract

The importance of cooperatives for European farmers has often been claimed but empirical studies to support this claim are scarce. This special issue presents a number of articles on the recent development and status of agricultural cooperatives in the European Union, based on original data collected in the EU-wide study 'Support for Farmers' Cooperatives'. The articles focus on trends in the internal organization, the institutional environment, and the strategies that cooperatives have developed in supply chains and markets. This introductory article presents data on the market shares that cooperatives hold in different sectors and countries, and introduces the three key determinants of performance of cooperatives: policies, strategies and internal organization. Finally, the article develops a future research agenda.

Potential of extensification of European agriculture for a more sustainable food system, focusing on nitrogen

“…Although a fair proportion of primary production sectors in the EU is organized in cooperatives (e.g. cereals 35%, dairy over 50%, pork 25%) these cooperatives increasingly act similarly to normal multinationals, focusing on cost price reduction rather than sustainability (Bijman et al 2012). An important step is to create premium certificates for intermediate production systems and products between conventional and more sustainable products with regard to animal welfare and the use of chemical inputs (Paarlberg 2013).…”

Overcoming the legacy of the past? Analyzing the modes of governance used by the Polish agricultural producer groups

“…For example, Hagedorn (2014) shows that trust among members, constructive communication regarding their problems and ideas, good leaders, and formal regulations for encouraging the cooperatives' development are important requirements for building sustainable cooperatives. Therefore, as discussed in Bijman and Iliopoulos (2014), a future research is necessary to verify the factors and characteristics required for agricultural cooperatives to perform well, not just the single criterion that was considered in this paper.…”

A Theory of Agricultural Marketing Cooperatives with Direct Selling

“…3 On the other hand, direct selling is a serious concern for some marketing cooperatives managers. Indeed, in a context where membership and loyalty are threatened (USDA, 2002;Bond, 2006;Bijman & Verhees, 2011;Mujawamariya et al, 2013), cooperatives increasingly question the pertinence of allowing their members to sell directly to consumers. Specifically, marketing cooperatives fear that they may not be able sustain the stock required for their activity if members are engaged in direct selling.…”