Problems and Management Decisions of New Bulgarian Farmers

The paper presents the organisational changes in agriculture and makes evaluation of management decisions and basic problems of Bulgarian family farms, cooperatives and partnerships. The paper is based on the field research work of the authors on the project “Comparative analysis of functioning and management of private production structures in agrarian sector” in Bulgaria (1999-2000), granted by the research program of the University for National and World Economy - Sofia. In first part of the paper farm structure is treated in two aspects: management organisation (legal form) and farm size. Independently of relatively small territory in Bulgaria existing and functioning together the both European farm models. In Northeast Bulgaria predominates the large size farm with typical characterizations for “Northern model”. The “Southern model” predominates not only in the mountain and semi mountain areas. Very small and small holdings are functioning in everyone villages. The analysis in second part is on data of survey in several regions in country. There are 50 family farms and 55 agricultural production cooperatives with typical production specialization and farm size. The survey includes three groups of questions about production resources, management decisions, organizational problems, production results and others. The last part of paper shows tendencies and alternatives for improvement of the management adaptivity and competitiveness of the newly formed organisations.Farm Management, Productivity Analysis,

Problems and Perspectives for Agricultural Economics Education in Bulgaria

The paper presents the changes in education of agricultural economics in Bulgaria in the transition period and makes evaluation of basic problems of education. Agricultural economics education in Bulgaria had eighty years tradition and experience. The paper includes three parts – experience, problems and future. The first part shows three periods of historical development and experience of agricultural economics education till 1990: *1921 – 1949 in Sofia State University; *1949 – 1976 in Higher agricultural institute in Sofia; *1976 – 1990 in Higher economics institute in Sofia. The second part contains analysis and evaluation of main problems in education in several directions: * Programs for education and textbooks; * Qualification of lectures; * Problems with new computers and products: * Transition period in high education from one to three degrees system (bachelor, master, doctor). The last section shows tendencies for improvement of the education with regard to Bulgaria`s integration with European Union.Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

THE LESSONS FROM THE DEVELOPMENT AND PROBLEMS OF PRODUCTION COOPERATIVE IN BULGARIAN AGRICULTURE

In the paper are depicted the lessons and the problems of functioning and restructuring of cooperative structures in agricultural sector in Bulgaria during the pre-accession period (1995- 2006). The unsolved institutional and legislative problems of these structures are shown in details. The purpose of the paper is to analyze and assess the status of the cooperative structures active in the agriculture and to offer concrete suggestions for their further adaptation to the EU legislation implemented in this area.agricultural cooperatives, EU accession, CAP implementation, Agribusiness,

MULTIFUNCTIONAL AGRICULTURE IN BULGARIA - OPPORTUNITIES AND PROSPECTS

The purpose of the paper is to analyze and to assess the status of the multifunctional agriculture in Bulgaria and on the basis of the attitudes of the agricultural producers to develop such activity to suggest trends for strengthening their adaptation to CAP conditions. The paper presents the main results from a scientific research of a team from the University of National and World Economy, Department “Economy of Natural Resources”, Agribusiness Section - Sofia, Bulgaria (2006-2007).multifunctional agriculture, multifunctional agricultural holding, Agribusiness, Community/Rural/Urban Development,

Development of Agrarian Structures in Bulgaria: From Productive Cooperatives to Sole Traders and Partnerships

The aim of the paper is to analyze the reasons for the still continuing organizational restructuring and for the transition of Bulgarian agriculture from collective cooperative forms to prevailing sole proprietors and small size collective partnerships based on stake principle. The conclusions and assessments in the paper are based on the data from 2003 Census of agricultural holdings and on results from two research regional projects: "The Land-leasing model of agriculture in Dobrich region" and "Integrated development of rural regions in Haskovo area".agricultural productive cooperatives, partnerships, sole proprietors, Agribusiness,

Agriculture in the Face of Changing Markets, Institutions and Policies: Challenges and Strategies

Since the late 1980s, agriculture in Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs) has been under considerable adjustment pressure due to changing political, economic and institutional environments. These changes have been linked to the transition process, as well as the ongoing integration into the European Union and the world market. Reduced subsidies, increased environmental and food quality demands, as well as structural changes in the supply, processing and food retailing sector call for major structural adjustments and the improvement of farmersâ managerial abilities. Though such changes always carry significant threats to farms, they also offer new opportunities for the farms' entrepreneurial engagement. Upcoming changes in the agricultural environment and their possible consequences for farm structures across Europe are thus still timely subjects. The objective of the IAMO Forum 2006 is to contribute to the success of agriculture in the CEECs, as well as their neighboring countries, in todayâs increasingly competitive environment. Concrete questions the conference focuses on are: What are the most suitable farm organizations, cooperative arrangements and contractual forms? How to improve efficiency and productivity? Where do market niches lie and what are the new product demands? This book contains 33 invited and selected contributions. These papers will be presented at the IAMO Forum 2006 in order to offer a platform for scientists, practitioners and policy-makers to discuss challenges and potential strategies at the farm, value chain, rural society and policy levels in order to cope with the upcoming challenges. IAMO Forum 2006, as well as this book, would not have been possible without the engagement of many people and institutions. We thank the authors of the submitted abstracts and papers, as well as the referees, for their evaluation of the abstracts from which the papers were selected. In particular, we would like to express our thanks to OLIVER JUNGKLAUS, GABRIELE MEWES, KLAUS REINSBERG and ANGELA SCHOLZ, who significantly contributed to the organization of the Forum. Furthermore, our thanks goes to SILKE SCHARF for her work on the layout and editing support of this book, and to JIM CURTISS, JAMIE BULLOCH, and DÃNALL Ã MEARÃIN for their English proof-reading. As experience from previous years documents, the course of the IAMO Forum continues to profit from the support and engagement of the IAMO administration, which we gratefully acknowledge. Last but not least, we are very grateful to the Robert Bosch Foundation, the Federal Ministry of Nutrition, Agriculture and Consumer Protection (BMELV), the German Research Foundation (DFG), the Haniel Foundation and the Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Central and Eastern Europe (IAMO) for their respective financial support.Agribusiness, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Farm Management, Industrial Organization, International Development, Labor and Human Capital, Land Economics/Use, Productivity Analysis,

Problems and Management Decisions of New Bulgarian Farmers

The paper presents the organisational changes in agriculture and makes evaluation of management decisions and basic problems of Bulgarian family farms, cooperatives and partnerships. The paper is based on the field research work of the authors on the project “Comparative analysis of functioning and management of private production structures in agrarian sector” in Bulgaria (1999-2000), granted by the research program of the University for National and World Economy - Sofia. In first part of the paper farm structure is treated in two aspects: management organisation (legal form) and farm size. Independently of relatively small territory in Bulgaria existing and functioning together the both European farm models. In Northeast Bulgaria predominates the large size farm with typical characterizations for “Northern model”. The “Southern model” predominates not only in the mountain and semi mountain areas. Very small and small holdings are functioning in everyone villages. The analysis in second part is on data of survey in several regions in country. There are 50 family farms and 55 agricultural production cooperatives with typical production specialization and farm size. The survey includes three groups of questions about production resources, management decisions, organizational problems, production results and others. The last part of paper shows tendencies and alternatives for improvement of the management adaptivity and competitiveness of the newly formed organisations

Problems and Perspectives for Agricultural Economics Education in Bulgaria

The paper presents the changes in education of agricultural economics in Bulgaria in the transition period and makes evaluation of basic problems of education. Agricultural economics education in Bulgaria had eighty years tradition and experience. The paper includes three parts – experience, problems and future. The first part shows three periods of historical development and experience of agricultural economics education till 1990: *1921 – 1949 in Sofia State University; *1949 – 1976 in Higher agricultural institute in Sofia; *1976 – 1990 in Higher economics institute in Sofia. The second part contains analysis and evaluation of main problems in education in several directions: * Programs for education and textbooks; * Qualification of lectures; * Problems with new computers and products: * Transition period in high education from one to three degrees system (bachelor, master, doctor). The last section shows tendencies for improvement of the education with regard to Bulgaria`s integration with European Union

THE LESSONS FROM THE DEVELOPMENT AND PROBLEMS OF PRODUCTION COOPERATIVE IN BULGARIAN AGRICULTURE

In the paper are depicted the lessons and the problems of functioning and restructuring of cooperative structures in agricultural sector in Bulgaria during the pre-accession period (1995- 2006). The unsolved institutional and legislative problems of these structures are shown in details. The purpose of the paper is to analyze and assess the status of the cooperative structures active in the agriculture and to offer concrete suggestions for their further adaptation to the EU legislation implemented in this area

MULTIFUNCTIONAL AGRICULTURE IN BULGARIA - OPPORTUNITIES AND PROSPECTS

The purpose of the paper is to analyze and to assess the status of the multifunctional agriculture in Bulgaria and on the basis of the attitudes of the agricultural producers to develop such activity to suggest trends for strengthening their adaptation to CAP conditions. The paper presents the main results from a scientific research of a team from the University of National and World Economy, Department “Economy of Natural Resources”, Agribusiness Section - Sofia, Bulgaria (2006-2007)