| This three-essay thesis uses a variety of techniques to evaluate the performance of agricultural producer organizations and study tradeoffs associated with specific managerial decisions. Chapter 2 presents a comprehensive case study of the failed Rice Growers Association of California (RGA). Whereas many cooperative case studies focus on a single cooperative that is contemplating an upcoming business opportunity, this case study contributes to the literature by analyzing the effects of a variety of business decisions and market changes over a span of multiple decades, relative to the ongoing Farmers' Rice Cooperative (FRC). Interview and survey findings reveal that many respondents felt RGA's Board of Directors was passive and, despite its large size, lacked the necessary expertise to direct management and represent the best interest of the broader cooperative membership. In the presence of challenging market conditions, RGA's former management teams were accused of making a number of poor business decisions that led to significant financial stress and the eventual dissolution of the firm.;Drawing on the observation that most promotion program evaluations do not account for variety heterogeneity, Chapter 4 applies two-stage demand system modeling techniques to evaluate category and variety sales effects of the United States Potato Board's domestic fresh potato promotion program. Generic promotion is found to positively and significantly benefit potato category sales and sales of seven individual varieties. However, the impact of promotion on specific varieties varies widely, a result of potentially many factors including differences in stage in the product life cycle, promotion objectives, type of media employed, and region of purchase. These findings contribute to the literature by demonstrating the disparate effects of category promotion on heterogeneous products and emphasizing the need to account for variety-specific impacts when seeking to maximize net promotion program benefits.;Expanding on a key finding of the RGA case study, Chapter 3 empirically tests the hypothesis that cooperative boards of directors and board size, specifically, can influence firm performance. Existing studies of cooperative governance rely on qualitative data to draw inferences; however, this chapter uses several USDA data sets and a survey of co-op managers to determine whether above-average board size has a negative impact on co-op performance. This approach is comparable to those found in the corporate governance literature; however, it contributes to the cooperative literature by providing statistically-based findings on optimal board size. Specifically, this study finds that additional board members do eventually reduce some measures of performance; however, board size must be quite large before diminishing returns to performance occur. |
