Change of values and organization in organic agricultural associations

Background: Increasing success and new demands on organic farming require intensive adaptation measures by the organic associations. On the one hand, both associations as well as new actors such as trading companies are growing, whereby the latter are thus getting increasingly important for the former. On the other hand, due to the increasing importance of sustainability issues, new aspects must be considered in the activities of associations and farmers, such as climate protection, optimization of biodiversity protection or fair working conditions. Consequently, there is a need for organic farming associations to deal with organizational change in various ways. In this process, decision-making processes and rules are changed, but also the culture and values of associations may undergo a re-evaluation.
Aims of the research: To trace the impact of new societal demands and the growth process of organic agriculture on organic farming associations. This concerns in particular the changes in decision-making structures and the re-evaluation of the values of associations and members and thus the organizational culture. The question is to be worked on in particular based on the Swiss- and the Danish organic agriculture.