Structural change in the Irish dairy industry: growth in scale, new methods of financing and internationalisation

摘要

This case study sets out to examine the structural change, which has occurred in the Irish dairy industry since 1983. Firstly, the industry as it was in 1983 is described, followed by a pen picture of the industry in 1998. Secondly, the change in the industry in terms of numbers and scale of firms active in each of the main product areas (fresh milk, butter, milk powder and cheese) in the period since 1983 and concentration ratios is quantified, together with the changing role of co-operatives. Thethird section of the paper is concerned with exploring the drivers of this change and in particular the extent to which the pattern of internationalisation revealed accords with theory. The most dramatic changes in the structure of the Irish dairy processing industry in the period since 1983 have been (a) the increased scale of the major companies due to internationalisation, and (b) the change in legal structure, whereby co-operatives have turned themselves into share companies (plcs) quoted on the stock exchanges. As we will see these issues are linked. By comparison, structural change as normally understood viz - changes in the number and size of the firms operating in the Irish dairy sector have been more modest.