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Understanding the heterogeneity among agricultural cooperatives

Author

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  • Jos BIJMAN

    (Wageningen University (The Netherlands))

  • Markus HANISCH

    (Humboldt University of Berlin (Germany))

Abstract

This paper discusses the importance of acknowledging and understanding the heterogeneity among cooperatives. Many studies on agricultural cooperatives, particularly on the impact of membership, do not account for the large differences in organisational and functional characteristics across cooperatives. We identify and discuss five core differences that have implications for theoretical and empirical research. We propose a classification that can be used by scholars in their research on understanding the evolution, performance and impact of producer cooperatives, and that can be used by policy makers in better targeting their support policies.

Suggested Citation

  • Jos BIJMAN & Markus HANISCH, 2020. "Understanding the heterogeneity among agricultural cooperatives," CIRIEC Working Papers 2013, CIRIEC - Université de Liège.
    • Handle: RePEc:crc:wpaper:2013
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    File URL: https://www.ciriec.uliege.be/repec/WP20-13.pdf
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Cooperatives; agriculture; typology; transactions; governance; evolution; performance; impact;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L2 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior
    • D23 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Organizational Behavior; Transaction Costs; Property Rights
    • Q13 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Agricultural Markets and Marketing; Cooperatives; Agribusiness

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