The Importance and Role of Trust in Agricultural Co-operation – Some Empirical Experiences from Hungary

Abstract

This paper examines the relations of trust in agricultural cooperation from two aspects. On the one hand, it gives a short review of relevant literature, with special regard to agri-food economy. On the other hand, it uses the results of empirical survey for the analysis of trust in machinery sharing arrangements of Hungarian agricultural producers. In connection with this, the trust is examined in two dimensions: contractual and competence trust. Our results prove that there is a positive correlation between the level of trust and the farmers’ activity in cooperative agreements. It could also be proved that the trust need is very different in the different fields of cooperation. It is a tendency that the contractual trust is more important in more intensive, higher-dependence cooperation activities, while competence trust becomes into the foreground in the more extensive solutions.Agribusiness,