Changing governance structures in South African agribusiness

This article examines the changing governance structures in the South African agri-food sector. Changing legislative and market conditions forced agribusiness managers to rethink their governance structures to ensure the competitiveness of the agri-food sector. They had to adapt to the new structures in a relatively short time. Three case studies of different levels of coordination between firms are presented. The analysis indicates a move away from spot markets to managed coordination structures in response to the deregulation of South African agricultural policy.