Quality and co-ordination in supply chains - the case of pork chains in the Netherlands

To satisfy consumer demands co-ordination between member organisations of a supply chain is necessary. Various co-ordination mechanisms exist, like standardisation of products or processes, quality management systems, chain integrators, or inter-organisational information systems. In this paper we will investigate which type of co-ordination mechanisms are suitable to use in connection with particular quality choices. Our approach is tested for two rather different pork chains in The Netherlands: one large, open, chain, and one small, closed, chain. A research agenda is proposed for investigating similar relationships in other chains in Europe. By relating such relationships to performance cross-border knowledge exchange and learning is made possible. The work is part of the FP6 Integrated Project Q-Porkchains.