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The provision of reliable food information, for instance by printing an authorised nutrition or health claim on a package of food, makes credence dimensions of a food transparent to the consumer. In Europe, prior-to-use authorisation of nutrition and health claims are mandatory and governed by Regulation (EC) 1924/2006. The aim of this paper is to assess the problems and pitfalls of the European claims regime to food businesses. A legal-economic review is performed, supported by case studies. Strategic factors determining whether or not to claim are of a legal-economic kind. Strategic responses include refraining from the use or application of claims, abstaining from innovation, and/or circumvention of the authorisation procedure. Negative social-economic effects make it necessary to improve the present legal structures with respect to their effectiveness while maintaining the balance between public control and individual freedom.

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the discussion on the positive and negative aspects of food information requirements, especially in the light of the acceptance of a new food information regulation (EU) 1169/2011. The methods which are used are legal and literature studies, case studies as well as the provision of supplementary data on the effects of food information requirements on consumer choices, costs and benefits. The field of food information is complex, since it includes legal, socio-psychological as well as economic aspects. The paper describes the major recent changes in food information law and the barriers to competitiveness of the European food industry as a consequence of connected problems and pitfalls. It suggests technical and legal solutions for improvement. The paper especially focuses on the major barriers to innovation: the competition on the package of legal and commercial information, the labelling of novel foodstuffs, (i.e., nanotechnology and gmo), and the authorisation of health claims. It advices to overhaul food information law: to integrate, simplify and to improve its logic.

This paper focuses on the regulation of financial accounting in SMEs in the agri- and food sector in Russia. The paper presents the factors which influence the accounting system and the quality of the information it provides. The information and reports that are prepared according to international standards are not comparable with reports prepared by Russian standards. They do not facilitate external users in gathering relevant information on the current financial position. The present usage of different systems for procuring information to satisfy the needs of multiple stakeholder groups takes time, distorts information, and often does not provide a true and fair view on business performance. One way to overcome this is the use of an integrated accounting system which allows, within the limits of Russian legislation, to provide a broad information base for external reporting. International standards could be used like IAS41 or those applied in the Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN). The derived data could be used for attraction of investments, presentation of information to all interested users, comparison of results of activities in similar companies, and as a benchmark for the activities of companies in various regions and/or segments. They could be used to compare Russian companies with similar ones in the European Union. This paper describes the benefits and pitfalls which companies potentially experience from implementing an integrated accounting information system for company management and financial reporting purposes in the Russian Federation.

Recent price movements have put food supply chains under pressure. On the one side, upward price tendencies on commodity markets result in higher costs to processing firms. On the other side, these firms are confronted with a strong retail sector that is able to prevent compensation to protect consumers’ and own economic interests. Regulatory impediments of European law, especially with respect to foodstuffs, can adversely be utilized as barriers to protect the interest downstream the supply chain. The problem is that legal-economic instruments which can serve to smooth price volatility in supply markets can also opportunistically be used at the expense of the middlesection in food supply chains (i.e., mainly small and medium sized producers). The aim of this article is to identify the legal-economic mechanisms that effect price transfers in food supply chains in the European Union and define policy adjustments to improve pricing mechanisms, while safeguarding the interests of the processing industry. Policy alternatives to improve the smooth functioning of notably intermediate markets in food supply chains are the restructuring of competition law, improved processor information management and creating transparency of value added in the supply chain by means of labelling devices.

The problem we address in this paper is that in projects focusing on public-private cooperation to stimulate innovation in the Netherlands, initiatives often lack continuation after the study-phase. We extracted possible influencing variables from business and (transaction) cost economic theorizing, stakeholder and capability theory. Moreover, we used measures for classifying projects with respect to financial interdependencies between participants. We supposed that project characteristics influence managerial behavior to continue or stop. We studied 28 projects (20 supply chain projects and 8 biological product development projects). Our aim was to explore the barriers and success factors for these co-innovation projects: innovation as a cooperative effort between public sector/research institute and private organization(s). We derived data from project descriptions and performed semi-structured interviews with project informants. Critical to success appears to be ex ante commitment of all parties. Goal congruence, both at a personal and a company level, and proportionality of sharing in project results are of decisive importance to establish such commitment. Estimations about financial project results should be made in an early stage; they should be used as a basis for negotiations on the (re)distribution of costs and benefits, especially if the value added is disproportionally distributed over the participants. Ideally, project teams of co-innovation projects should bring in complementary capabilities: technical, marketing, financial and organizational. Project governance should therefore be organized in such a way that the knowledge gaps are filled in before kick-off.

The goal of this paper is to frame the effect of regulatory burdens in a research outline which enables the study of their effect on the competitiveness of the food and drinks industry, especially the European dairy sector. A firm perspective is used. We address the basic structure and tendencies in the food sector, the regulatory role of regulatory burdens and their effect on competitiveness. A theoretical foundation is provided by transaction cost economics and total quality management insights. The effects of legislation on administrative costs and competitiveness are mediated by impacts on innovativeness, company strategy, food safety system availability, as well as the available information & communication capabilities. Building on a previous studies showing the negative impact of administrative requirements on competitiveness, this paper focuses at expanding the available research framework and to adjust it to sector (i.e. dairy) specifics. We will connect to previous research (Wijnands et al., 2007) which, among others, generated the following generic results: - administrative burdens are connected to prevention measures; - administrative burdens impede on the innovativeness of food companies; - administrative burdens are influenced by the content of law and by the predictability and clearness of regulations.

The goal of this paper is to assess the effect of regulatory burdens in the European dairy industry on its competitiveness. A theoretical foundation is provided by transaction cost economics and total quality management insights. The effects of legislation on administrative requirements and competitiveness are supposed to be mediated by impacts on innovativeness, company strategy, food safety system availability, as well as the available information & communication capabilities. We will connect to previous research (Wijnands et al., 2007) and the findings therein. Four sub-questions are addressed: • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, innovation and competitiveness? • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, food safety & quality system deployment and competitiveness? • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, food labelling requirements and competitiveness? • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, supply chain transparency and competitiveness? In addition to the theoretical framework presented earlier in Bremmers et al., 2008, this paper contains the first results of a survey in the European dairy industry. They are combined with the proceeds from a literature search. The results show that (Q1) especially product innovation is negatively impacted by administrative burdens. Food safety and quality systems (Q2) serve to provide a level playing field in Europe. They would be installed also if no legal requirements would enforce them, because clients ask for it, so that administrative burdens could easily be attributed to business strategy rather than legal obligations. To reduce administrative burdens, we advice to integrate food safety and quality requirements is necessary. It would reduce monitoring and reporting costs, both for private as well as public parties. Food labeling (Q3) (a ‘made in Europe’ origin marking) could work contraproductive with respect to the competitive position of dairy firms and will have an increase of administrative burdens as a net-effect. And last but not least (Q4), increased chain transparency (mentioning the name of intermediary producers on the end-product package) will accelerate administrative burdens, but will only be beneficial for SMEs with a differentiated product. Commodity-producers in the dairy industry which only follow a cost strategy will gradually merge and/or disappear.

This article focuses on the problem: what external (stakeholder) and internal (structural/organizational) factors drive companies in the food- and agribusiness towards innovative environmental management? Innovative companies are those considered to have adopted a supply-chain perspective, instead of a focus on the single business unit. We propose that innovativeness is associated with stakeholder wishes (the government, the public environmental policy being a major influential factor), in combination with structural characteristics of the firm (like R&D-efforts, culture and managerial competences). We surveyed 492 companies in 2002, to get insight into the causes of innovativeness in the Dutch agri-food sector, and supplemented this data by means of a similar questionnaire in 2005. Structural equation modeling and correlation analysis were applied. The research provided evidence that companies are restricted by, and therefore not comfortable with, public environmental policies, which seem to obstruct innovativeness rather than stimulate it. Firms that (1) have enough internal (physical, financial, social) resources to innovate, and (2) are more embedded in a web of (commercial) stakeholder wishes, prove to be more innovative. Suggestions are made to shift the corporate and public policies towards a supply chain-oriented approach by granting benefits for vertical cooperation in supply-chains.

Globalization is an important issue in the food industry, although most food is still locally produced and consumed. Many small and medium enterprises characterize the industry. Results of WTO negotiations intensify the international competition, in which the EU and USA are the largest players. Countries like Brazil, India and China are gaining market share. This raises the following research questions: 1. How competitive are the EU and US food industry and their sub-sectors? 2. Which role plays innovation and legislation in the competitiveness of the industry? 3. How will the competitiveness develop under future globalization and trade liberalization? The goal of this study is to fill these knowledge gaps.

Managerial changes are necessary for companies in the Dutch food industry and agribusiness to lessen the environmental impact of their activities. To identify the opportunities or limits of environmental management systems (EMSs), it is important to first understand what influence stakeholders have on EMS development. In an empirical research we found that developmental levels of internally oriented EMSs, which primarily aim at internal administrative procedures, are explained mainly by the frequency of contacts with governmental authorities. For this kind of EMSs, non-commercial stakeholder groups have a major influence on the corporate environmental policy. Externally oriented EMSs, which focus on joint efforts in supply chains, are influenced by commercial groups in the business network (like suppliers, clients and competitors). The development of externally oriented EMSs requires adjustments in the composition of and interaction with the stakeholder environment by governmental agencies as well as managers in the agri-food sector. Opening up towards the stakeholder environment, by (among others) an adjustment of the information system, integrated (supply-chain wide) auditing and licensing, can enhance cost-efficiency, transparency and sustainability.

The present paper focuses on the perceived quality of information exchange between government and business (G2B) in the field of environmental reporting in the Dutch agrifood industry. It seems most important for environmental performance enhancement (a concept that includes the quality of information given to stakeholders in our view) that companies are entangled in a network of intermediary institutions (branch organizations, covenants, existence of chain leaders etc.). It seems that that these mediating institutions are very instrumental in translating the governmental message to the companies. The companies choose the (related to the development of internal care) improvement of electronic reporting as the most promising innovation for the G2B communication. This shows that the companies still have a long way to go towards chain oriented care systems.

The paper aims at confronting traditional (fiscal) reporting with the administrative requirements in modern farm management. It aims especially at formulating leading indicators for management and control with respect to environmental issues.