Falling commodity returns. Proliferating environmental regulations. More complicated technologies. Pickier consumers. The general outlook is for an economic environment that puts greatly increased demands on agribusiness management. It's a sow's ear. What can be done with it?

ABSTRACT Niche marketing has recently received a great deal of attention in the agri-food trade press and in academic circles as a legitimate strategy for small- and medium-sized agri-food firms. Due to the limited theoretical treatment of agri-food niche marketing strategy, the paper will apply...

The link between strategic planning and firm performance has been studied for over two decades. This paper examines this link, with emphasis on small agribusiness firms. A model of strategic planning and performance is developed and applied to small agribusiness firms. Implications for research...

The emergence of biotechnology in crop and livestock applications has been an issue of great controversy. Proponents argue that the potential benefits are dramatic while opponents have raised many concerns about the technology's risks. The Starlink debacle is a prime example of the undesirable...

The market for organic food has been growing 20% per year for the past nine years. Fruits and vegetables are a large part of the organic market, accounting for more than $670 million in retail sales annually. This presents an opportunity for entry of new agricultural producers, and the expansion...

The paper presents an analysis of cooperative investment decision based on the coalition theoretical framework (Staatz 1983, 1987, 1989). According to this framework, cooperatives can be considered as coalitions of groups with different interests. The behavior of any cooperative is determined by...

Many agricultural economists are not familiar with case study research, yet the approach is a useful means of collecting data, and building and testing theory. Case study research has a prescribed set of objectives, epistemology, methodology, and methods that have been developed and tested in a...

The concept of social capital is defined as a third process (along with individual incentives and authority relationships) for assuring transaction cost efficiency. Social capital is especially relevant to international transactions because cultural differences, large distances, and limited...

The current research explores the potential to develop a cherry-apple hard cider market as a potential means to increase demand for and the value of Michigan fruit grower's product. Factors affecting both the development of hard cider markets in Michigan and cherry-apple hard cider were...