Experiences of Organic Dairy Farmers with Ailing Milk Markets - A Sociological Study in Northern Germany -

Summary

The case refers to organic milk production and the marketing of organic milk produce.
We describe the situation of two groups of organic dairy farmers working in
northern Germany.
The two groups are confronted with an extremely difficult choice. They have to
choose whether they will continue to follow a quality oriented strategy of organic farming
or whether they will favour mass production concepts – based on the principles for organic production of course.
Against this background several general results can be drawn from our study. The
process which we characterize as “transforming rural communication” is actually
underway in rural areas. The consciousness of problems and tasks related to the development of rural areas has become stronger.
More off, actors who want to dedicate themselves to these tasks are joining together. In Germany, significantly more regional initiatives can be found today than several years ago, whereby certain political promotion
programs play a large role.