Technical efficiency of the Spanish dairy processing industry: Do size and exporting matter?

Abstract

This chapter uses DEA to measure the technical efficiency of a sample of Spanish dairy processing firms over the period 2001-2009. Differences in technical efficiency between firms of different sizes and between firms that operated in international markets versus those that were not are tested. The results show that larger dairy processing firms were, on average, more efficient than smaller ones. Furthermore, within the groups of small and large firms, those firms that are exporting were more efficient than firms that do not export. The distribution of technical efficiency, of the small- and micro-sized exporters, stochastically dominates the distribution of the non-exporters in most years.