Volume Growth in Quality Food Firms – Lessons and Reflections from Norway

A review of research on growth processes in quality food chains in Norway shows that only a few studies have focused on growth in such chains. Studies look at food businesses as the focal unit and discover many challenges for local firms with growth ambitions. The main issues seem to concern distribution and follow-up sales, where communicating qualities of products to customers is a key challenge. Other challenges observed were developing and maintaining qualities of products to gain premium priced products, the financing of growth, developing the business organisation and establishing cooperation and networks for growth

Full case study report: Røros Meat - Norway

Røros Meat is a local meat processing company emphasizing local and traditional products. Since 2011 the company has produced organic products to the retail chain Rema 1000. Before and today the main activity is processing non-organic and traditional 3 products for the HoReCa (Hotel, Restaurant and Catering)-market in the region. Røros Meat is located in Os, a neighboring municipality of Røros. Despite the fact that the two locations belong to different counties; they are located in the same mountain region of the eastern parts of Southern Norway. The reason for using the name Røros in their business name is the already established value of this name/brand due to Røros status as a historical mining town on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, and Røros is a well-known name and travelling spot for both national and international tourism. Beside traditional economic activities such as agriculture and forestry, tourism is a very important activity for the town and the district. Røros Meat, established in 2003, took over another meat processor company, which had a low performance. Regional organic farmers were decisive in establishing the meat processing company just as they were for Røros Dairy. They wanted a local milk- and meat processing opportunity for their organic productions. The regional organic farmer cooperative, Økomat Røros BA, was a driving force for starting the company. Five private actors, the organic cooperative Økomat Røros, and Røros Dairy came in as shareholders. Røros Abattoir was one of the owners. In 2007 they bought new shares in the company and they now own about 60 % of the shares. The abattoir has two persons in the board of Røros Meat, where one of these are the chair of board. From 2014 the General Manager of Røros Abattoir now also hold this position in Røros Meat. The plan is to merge the two companies. The main reason why we wanted to study the value chain of Røros Meat as part of the Healthy Growth project is their production of organic products for the supermarket chain REMA 1000. REMA 1000 is a typical discount chain in Norway and until recently organic food has not been a focus. We have not studies the value chain of Røros Meat in depth according to the template developed for the Healthy Growth project, rather we mainly shed light on the cooperation with REMA 1000 as part of a growth strategy of the company. 4 Figure 1: Map of Norway and Røros Røros Dairy is the only organic dairy in Norway, established in 2001. It has experienced a steady growth since established and has today 20 employees and a turnover of 45.5 mill NOK (5,5 mill EUR) in 2013. There have been periods of economic struggles, but today the dairy is profitable and perceived as one of the most successful organic firms and value chains in Norway. Their success in combining growth with organic and other product qualities is the reason why we selected the dairy and its value chain as a case in the Healthy Growth project

Governance and Growth – a Case Study of Norwegian Whey Protein Concentrate Exports

In this article, we explore the global value chain (GVC) for whey protein concentrate (WPC 80) and permeate powder (PP) through a case study following the practicalities of the export of WPC 80 and PP from the Norwegian farmer-owned dairy cooperative, Tine SA. We follow processing, packaging, logistics and export administration. The study suggests that the value chain and the partnership between Tine and Arla Foods may be described as a “captive” global value chain were Tine is transactional dependent on the main actor, Arla Food Ingredients. We conclude by discussing some features of power relations in global value chains and the global markets

Healthy growth: From niche to volume with integrity and trust. State of the art: National report Norway

The working paper gives an overview over organic production, consumption and studies of growth in mid-scale values based food chains in Norway

State of the art review (WP2). On healthy growth initiatives in the mid-scale values-based chain of organic food

The Core organic II project HealthyGrowth assumes that present organic value chains seem either to operate in local markets with direct sale or in conventional retail chains where organic qualities are not properly communicated (HealthyGrowth (HG) proposal 2010). Within this statement lies an observation from previous research that local organic market chains have inherent problems in moving from niche to volume and mainstream large-scale market chains have inherent problems in securing and advancing organic values. Therefore, the aim of the HealthyGrowth project is to investigate a range of successful mid-scale organic value chains in order to learn how they are able to combine volume and values. Before the participants of the project start collecting data on such chains, the first major step was to develop a state-of-the-art review of research on successful mid-scale values-based chains (ibid.). The objective of WP2 in HealthyGrowth is to compile the most current research on organic markets and value chains in a state-of-the-art review. The main focus has been on studies of mid-scale value-based food chains and growth processes in the organic food sector. The aim of the review is to learn more about growth processes with its challenges, options and risks. Moreover, the review is supposed to point out main mechanisms and organizational principles underlying the successful development of businesses or initiatives, and identify the theories and methodologies most commonly used in the field (HG proposal 2010). This report is based on national state-of-the-art reports from the participating countries of the HealthyGrowth project, consisting of research on successful mid-scale values-based chains in the ten HealthyGrowth countries Germany, Denmark, Slovenia, Lithuania, Austria, France, Sweden, Finland, Turkey and Norway. Additionally, a review of research from other countries is carried out. This report presents an analysis and summary of these reviews

Utvikling av verdikjeder for økologisk mat

Utvikling av verdikjeder for økologisk mat. - Økologisk produksjon - Verdikjeder for mat - Differensiering - Økologiske verdikjeder i Europa - Hva karakteriserer vellykkede økologiske verdikjeder? - Differensieringsstrategier - oppsummerin

Healthy growth: From niche to volume with integrity and trust. Om prosjektet

Presentasjon av prosjektet Healthygrowt for stakeholders i trøndersk landbruk. Arr: Kompetansekafe, Kompetanseløft Trøndersk Landbruk. Norsk senter for bygdeforskning, Trondheim 13.12.2013

Trading Growth - A Study of the Governance of Norwegian Whey Protein Concentrate Exports

In this paper, we explore the global value chain (GVC) for whey protein concentrate (WPC 80) and permeate powder (PP) through a study following the practicalities of the export of WPC 80 and PP from the Norwegian farmer-owned dairy cooperative, Tine SA. We follow processing, packaging, logistics and export administration. The study suggests that the value chain and the partnership between Tine and Arla Foods may be described as a “captive” global value chain were Tine is transactional dependent on the main actor, Arla Food Ingredients. We conclude by discussing some features of the global markets for engineered food

Global Value Chains and Middlemen. A Comparative Case-Study of Norwegian Agricultural Export

International trade in agriculture open markets abroad for producers and suppliers. However, the capacity to serve these markets are not evenly distributed. For many exporters it is a challenge to access foreign markets and connect to global value chains (GVC). Agricultural markets are often characterised by asset specificity and oligopsonic market structures. These are features that tend to imply hierarchic governance structures and asymmetric dependencies.  Thus, for the exporters, how to engage with partners in order to access foreign markets becomes critical. In this paper we explore how three export initiatives from Norwegian agriculture coordinate and connect to global value chains. We discuss the mode of governance, as well as the role of middlemen. We further discuss the characteristics of the coordination and the strategic implications for the exporting partners. The three cases are export of Whey protein concentrate (WPC 80) from Tine SA, export of the genetic material (The breed Norwegian Red) from Geno SA, and cured meat of lamb legs (fenalår) from the company Fenalår from Norway SA.

Understanding ‘healthy’ growth processes in organic food businesses and values-based chains

Food businesses face specific challenges when they are expanding, and when volumes and turnover start growing significantly. Higher value food chains, such as organic food chains, tend to converge either towards rather narrow market segments and niches or towards conventionalisation and loss in added value. In addition many entrepreneurs in the organic food sector do not possess a formal training in business economics and/or management. However, as businesses grow, increasing management competences are required and this tends to become a constraint. Aiming to better understand different development pathways with their particular challenges, business strategies and management instruments, this paper presents an analysis of 19 case studies in Europe and Turkey with respect to their expansion pathways