Züchtervereinigungen - Innovationsmotor der deutschen Milchviehzucht?

Future developments of world food markets present a challenge for agribusiness as a whole. Animal husbandry, one of the upstream stages in the food value chain, can contribute to this by selecting appropriate breeding animals and combining desirable traits. In Germany, animal husbandry in particular bears the stamp of cooperative organisations. Cooperatives are not generally seen as driving forces of innovation; nevertheless, they have for years contributed to a continuously improved performance, and in particular in dairy cattle breeding. Scientific findings on the correlations of innovation, profitability, organisation and networking activities among increasingly competitive animal breeding enterprises are not yet available. By means of case studies and multivariate analysis methods, this article highlights correlations as well as differences between the enterprises, and provides the basis for broader considerations from the viewpoint of animal breeders, breeders' organisations, and politics.