7.2 Farmer organizations
Farmer
organizations (FOs) can be grouped into two types:
- Community-based, resource-oriented organizations. This type of organization could be a community level cooperative or association dealing with inputs needed by the members to enhance the productivity of their businesses based on land, water, or animals.
This group of organizations
can generate income from the sale of inputs and outputs. The income can then be
put back into the organization by spending it on extension, data generation,
business planning, and administration. It is essential to have professional and
honest management with constant monitoring and periodic rounds of evaluation.
-
Commodity-based, market-oriented organizations. These organizations specialize in a single commodity and opt for value-added products which have expanded markets. They are designated as output-dominated organizations. These FOs are generally not small and have to operate in a competitive environment. Research, input supply, extension, credit, collection of produce, processing, and marketing are all integrated to maximize the returns on the investments of the members who invested in the collective enterprise.
Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike 3.0 License
This Learning Resource was Created by the Regional MSc AICM Program at the Haramaya University RDAE Department with Support of AgShare Project.