The value-added diversification strategy provides an option for guaranteeing the sustainability of small farms. This study examines how factors related to managerial strategy and socio-environmental sustainability influence the efficiency of diversification initiatives. For this purpose, we use a novel and unique database of value-added ventures implemented by 49 dairy farms located in northern Spain. We construct a production frontier using a Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model to estimate technical efficiency. The mean technical efficiency of the initiatives was 0.56 and 0.59 for the constant and variable returns specifications, respectively. Determinants of efficiency are analyzed with a two-step procedure with a double bootstrap. We find that the elaborations of more complex products other than fresh milk are negatively associated with efficiency. However, specialization in one product with different variants and direct sales both have a positive association with efficiency. In terms of socio-environmental variables, there is a positive association between efficiency and the use of quality schemes such as ‘protected designation of origin’ (PDO), the use of organic labelling and the farmer having university education, and a negative association with the percentage of family labor. Our findings support the idea that value-added diversification contributes to more resilient pathways of development and underlines the importance of good quality management of marketing and operational factors.

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This paper explores different value-creating strategies (VCS) used by dairy farmers engaged in on-farm diversification ventures. In order to explicitly identify the informal strategies followed by 49 farmers in their value-added ventures, we applied a theoretically informed business model framework combining three dimensions: value proposition linked to local food, customer engagement via quality schemes and shorter supply chains, and the key capabilities of the entrepreneur. Using cluster analysis, four different types of VCS were identified and labelled as ‘Ecological’, ‘Single-product’, ‘Innovative’, and ‘Traditional’. Whilst we found that these strategies are influenced by contextual factors and the owner’s entrepreneurial skills, in general, we did not observe significant differences in performance between them. The results suggest that farmers respond entrepreneurially to sectorial changes adopting those VCS that tend to align with their entrepreneurial capabilities and context, thus enabling them to succeed with any of the strategies pursued. Hence, our work contributes towards clarifying the relationship between VCS, entrepreneurial capabilities, and context. This is important for farmers and policymakers because it reveals the diversity of farm management and the resilience of farm systems. As a result, the potential challenges for Single-product VCS and Traditional VCS are discussed.

A more open and competitive dairy market has encouraged certain dairy farms to adopt value-adding strategies in order to achieve a higher profitability, which may be important for farms’ survival. This paper investigated the role of some product characteristics in the profitability of value-added products in these farms. For this purpose, we used a unique database of 265 different products commercialized by 49 Spanish dairy farms that offers information on nine attributes of each product. Using hedonic models as a baseline, we examined the influence of these attributes on the margin per liter (ML) of the products. The results of the regression indicated that cheese and yogurt generated 0.688 and 1.518 € more of margin per liter than liquid milk. Similarly, we found a set of attributes that have a positive influence on ML, including possession of a certificate of protected designation of origin (PDO), the milk-type composition (proportion of sheep milk), a longer expiration period, and involvement in direct marketing strategies (DMS). However, other recognized attributes such as organic labeling, maturation period, size of the sales unit and returnable packaging did not have a significant influence on ML. Our findings also showed that firms producing more elaborated products as cheese and yogurt need a lower percentage of their production to cover the fixed costs associated to transformation and commercialization. Overall, our results revealed that the elaboration of value-added dairy products improves the profitability of dairy farms.

Este trabajo analiza si el nivel de desarrollo de los sistemas de costes hospitalarios (SC) implementados por los Servicios Regionales de Salud (SRS) españoles tiene algún efecto en la eficiencia de los hospitales. Para ello, utilizamos los datos públicos de 159 hospitales del Sistema Nacional de Salud (SNS) español entre 2010 y 2013, el período de mayores restricciones presupuestarias derivadas de la crisis económica. Aplicamos tres metodologías: primero, un modelo de análisis envolvente de datos (AED) convencional seguido de una regresión Tobit; segundo, un procedimiento de dos pasos con doble bootstrap propuesto por Simar y Wilson (2007), y tercero, el cálculo del índice Malmquist y la aplicación de regresión logística para explicar el cambio en la eficiencia. Encontramos que en el contexto estudiado hay una relación directa entre un SC más desarrollado y la mejora de la eficiencia. Nuestros resultados sugieren que los responsables políticos y los reguladores deberían incentivar el desarrollo de SC hospitalarios estandarizados. This paper analyzes whether the level of development of the hospital cost systems (CS) implemented by the Spanish Regional Health Services (RHS) has an effect on hospital efficiency. For this purpose, we used the public data of 159 hospitals of the Spanish National Health System (NHS) between 2010 and 2013, the period of the most stringent budgetary constraints derived from the economic crisis. We apply three methodologies: first, a conventional data envelopment analysis (DEA) model followed by a Tobit regression; second, a two-step procedure with a double bootstrap proposed by Simar & Wilson (2007), and third, the calculation of the Malmquist index and the application of logistic regression to explain the change in efficiency. We find that in the context studied there is a direct relationship between the most developed CS and the improvement of efficiency. Our findings suggest that policy makers and regulators should incentivize the development of standardized hospital CS.