5912: Encouraging Collective Farmers Marketing Initiatives

{PROJECT} COFAMI: Encouraging Collective Farmers Marketing Initiatives. Runs 01 September 2005 - 31 February 2008. Project leader(s): Sanders, Jürn, Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), CH-5070 Frick. More information online at <http://www.fibl.org/forschung/sozio-oekonomie/betriebswirtschaft/cofami.php>.

Summary

Definition of the problem:
Collective Farmers Marketing Initiatives (COFAMIs) potentially provide an answer to the challenges set to European farmers by changing market and policy conditions. By pooling ideas, experiences and capital they enable farmers to build up market knowledge and linkages, and create a favourable environment for the dissemination of skills and best practices. Also, concentration of offer may open up scale advantages, strengthen the collective bargaining power of producers, and make them attractive market partners for retailers operating at larger scales. More generally, COFAMIs have the potential to reinforce rural incomes and employment, strengthen synergies with other economic activities, and bring agriculture more in line with the demands set by wider society.
Project aims including target group:
This project aims to strengthen the role of COFAMIs by identifying the social, economic, cultural and political factors that limit/enable their development. Additionally, it seeks to formulate viable support strategies to enhance their performance, dissemination and continuity. By means of national status-quo analyses and a set of in-depth case studies it addresses the existing diversity of COFAMIs in Europe to determine the relative influence of different types of limiting/enabling factors.
The overall objective of the project is:
To identify the social, economic, cultural and political factors that are limiting/enabling farmers to pool ideas, experiences and capital in the development of co-operative producer organisations and marketing initiatives that adequately respond to changing market and policy conditions. In addition to the identification of barriers, limitations and success factors, the project seeks to identify viable strategies and appropriate support measures for enhancing the performance, dissemination and continuity of collective marketing initiatives.
Methodology:
- Qualitative case-study analysis
- Action research design
- Expert consultation

Additional Summary

Project Coordinator: Wageningen University, Department of Social Sciences, Rural Sociology Group (WU)
Involved organisations, project partners:
1.Wageningen University, Department of Social Sciences, Rural Sociology Group (WU)
2.Forschungsinstitut Biologische Landwirtschaft (FiBL)
3.QAP Decision (QAP)
4.Institut fuer Laendliche Strukturforschung an der J.W. Goethe Universitaet (IfLS)
5.Innsbruck University, Centre for Mountain Agriculture (IU)
6.Baltic Studies Center (BSC)
7.Research Centre on Animal Production (CRPA)
8.Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences (DIAS)
9.Institute for Political Sciences, Hungarian Academy of Sciences (IPS)
10.Czech University of Agriculture in Prague, Department of Humanities, Faculty of Economics and Management

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