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Abstract
As the most intensive form of partnership
in agriculture, farming collectives (FCs) place high
demands on their participants. Based on a census of
Swiss farming collectives, three success indicators are
formed. The first and second describe interpersonal and
economic success respectively, whilst the third
encompasses overall success. Factors influencing success
are determined by means of multiple regressions. Five
predictor variables (compatibility with co-operation
partner, trust, information quality, attitude of social
environment, and relationship/kinship circle of the cooperation
partner) accounted for 44 per cent of the
variance in interpersonal success. Economic success was
far more difficult to explain (R2 = 0.11). Even so, the
influence of “soft” factors, even on the economic success
of a farming collective, is striking. Above all, trust and
the human and structural compatibility of the cooperation
partners play an important role for all three
types of success. The co-operation agreement,
agricultural consultation, the number of participating
people on the farm, and the investments made may be
ranked as less important than previously assumed.