Critical success factors when going global: Agribusiness co-operative growth

Abstract

Agricultural co-operatives make a significant contribution to New Zealand's economy, but "going global" involves the realities of conducting business at an international scale with potential for significant risk exposure in both the short and long run. This paper provides a case study analysis detailing the critical success factors for agribusiness co-operatives growing internationally. The paper studies the strategies of three New Zealand agri-co-operatives with international business ventures (Ravensdown, the Dairy Goat Co-operative, and Fonterra). The case data suggests international success is a factor of sufficient access to capital, strong customer relationships, value chain management and maintaining control through competitive advantage. Keywords: Case study, co-operative, critical success factors, international growth, strategy