Browsing by Subject "Organic production"

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    Beiträge des Informationsmanagements zur Qualitätssicherung in der ökologischen Schweinefleischproduktion in Deutschland
    (2011) Hoffmann, Christa; Doluschitz, Reiner
    Fuelled by recurring food scandals in recent years, the demand for organically produced pork has also increased. In order to continue to meet the particularly high demands for organic production, the requirements for effective quality assurance concepts at all levels of the supply chain are also increasing, with increasing production volumes and the first scandals in organic pork production. The requirements for documentation associated with legal regulations and the increasing demands for quality made by the consumer present great challenges, particularly for the many small-scale farms of organic agriculture. In order to make use of the increasing breadth of available data, information must be not simply collected, but also analyzed in a targeted manner and sharing it with other members of the supply chain is vital. For these reasons, interest in operational and industry-wide management systems for quality assurance is steadily increasing, also in organic pork production. Therefore, the goal of the present study is to discover the optimization potentials for information management, a central element in quality management of organic pork production. The present study approaches this goal in a two-part process. First, the general strengths (e.g. high quality), weaknesses (e.g. small stock structures), opportunities (e.g. new markets) and risks (e.g. cheap import products) of organic production are identified and analyzed, using interviews with a total of 30 experts from 11 European countries. In addition, the production structures and information management are comparatively analyzed. The differences between often small-scale, rural producers and increasingly industrial operations and marketing are apparent for Germany as well. According to the interviewed experts, Germany is currently considered among the leading countries in information management, although it sometimes exhibits great potential, largely in primary production. With a focus on this sector of the supply chain, exclusively German organic pork producers will be surveyed in the second part of this study. In terms of information management, information and communication technologies appear to be well organized within the farming operations. Nevertheless, computers and internet are as yet only rarely used for operations management. Similarly, a movement towards a continuous improvement process in the context of quality management in the farms is taking place (via feedback and the introduction of measures), but deficiencies in hygiene management are also prevalent (e.g. failure to disinfect stalls). The cause study identifies the influencing factors within the framework of the factor analysis. The relationships are illustrated by the behaviour acceptance model developed in this study. The model is based on relevant theories on behaviour research, technology acceptance and benefit optimization. In the concluding comparative factor analysis, clear differences and even contrasting results were observed in the current activities between specialized and unspecialized farms, in terms of information management for quality assurance. As a result, individual needs are different for these two types of operation. The recommendations for action derived from this are, for example, advanced training and education opportunities that can be helpful in many ways including, for example, to provide the basic knowledge that is lacking in hygiene and quality management. The concluding discussion of the results brings together the findings of both parts of the study and ties them in with the relevant scientific literature, and conclusions are drawn. Hence, from the first part of the study, essential requirements for structural changes are derived. There are two possible directions for development for Germany, based on its established direct marketing and distinct organizational structures. One, an industrially and focally structured production with increasingly large stock populations and another, much smaller-scale production oriented toward direct marketing. Because the technical foundations for efficient information management in the farming operations are available, in essence the responsibility for quality assurance (e.g. through targeted education) must be encouraged across the country. Information management must be adopted as a profitable component of the agricultural activities. This study has shown that information management for quality assurance, and also above all industry-wide systems, are still in the early stages of development, implementation and use. However, there is a need for further research in other areas of the supply chain, as well as for detailed studies of this subject in other EU countries.