Description
Book SynopsisThis book offers a coherent perspective on the transition to a market-based agri-food system in the Central and Eastern European Countries and the New Independent States of the former Soviet Union. It provides a formal analysis of the entire food chain from farm inputs to final consumers including imports and exports. Major components of the agribusiness sector (inputs, farm-level marketing, processing, distribution and retailing) are all dealt with in separate chapters. In addition there is coverage of food security, multinationals, commercial law, finance and building market institutions. Theoretical chapters are devoted to problems concerning prices, transactions costs and bilateral monopoly. This theoretical discussion gives an in depth discussion of the difficulties underlying the process of transition to a market-based agri-food system and forms a consistent focus for the book as a whole. Overall, the book makes a highly original contribution to the literature on this topical sub
Table of Contents1: Introduction 2: Background to Economic Transformation 3: Description of Command Economy Agrifood Systems 4: Constraints to Transforming Agrifood Systems 5: The Problem of Prices 6: Doing Business - The High Cost of Transactions 7: Privatization and Monopolization of the Agrifood Chain 8: Progress and Problems in the Process of Transformation 9: Few Sellers: Agroinputs for the Farm Sector 10: Taking Farms Apart: Large Units or Small Farms? 11: To Whom do I Sell?: Marketing Channels for Farmers 12: Quality Control and Reliability: The Challenge for Processors 13: Moving to Market: Transportation and Distribution 14: Catering to Consumers: Retailing in Transition 15: Treating Agrifood as a System: Dealing with Perishables 16: The Horn of Plenty: Competition from Imports 17: Entering the International Market: Realizing Export Potential 18: Direct Foreign Investment: Handling Agribusiness Transnationals 19: Developing New Institutions 20: Reducing Transactions Costs Through Market Institutions 21: Financing Transformation 22: A System of Commercial Law 23: Health, Food Safety and Consumer Protection Regulations 24: Facing the Future 25: Ensuring Food Security 26: Agrifood Systems on Different Paths 27: Joining the International System
