Networking in Meat Production Systems: The Influence of Cooperative Structures on Farmers’ Participation

Abstract

Increasing competitive pressures as well as growing requirements with regard to quality and safety pose a continuous challenge for farmers in European agrifood netchains. Against this background, the significance of network

‐wide collaboration has been pointed out in recent years, especially for German livestock farming (Petersen et al., 2007). In the literature, it is generally agreed that participation in specialized networks can be beneficial to the competitiveness of individual farms and firms (Gellynck, Vermeire and Viaene, 2006). (more....)