The Role of Agricultural Cooperatives in the European Union: A Strategy for Cypriot Accession?

Agricultural co-operatives have a long tradition in the European Union, and in recent years they have been rising in number. Co-operatives may offer various advantages such as improving the bargaining power of farmers, stabilising prices, allowing economies of scale to be exploited, or offering guarantees with regard to quality. The aim of the paper is to see how far agricultural co-operatives could play a role in helping one of the applicant countries prepare for EU enlargement. The paper deals with the characteristics of agricultural co-operatives, and the EU experience with co-operatives and producer associations, pointing out some of the difficulties encountered. The paper then describes the main features of Cypriot agricultural production and trade. After indicating how agricultural policies in Cyprus would have to be adapted to bring them in line with the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the paper suggests how co-operatives might play a role.