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Innovation Potential of Micro and Small Entrepreneurship in Ecological Production of Fruits and Vegetables

The project “Socioeconomic factors of micro and small entrepreneurship in ecological food production” is being carried out at the Department of Sociology of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb. In the course of the project, systematic investigation of micro and small entrepreneurship in ecological production of fruits and vegetables in the Republic of Croatia has been undertaken. It is expected that the research will identify key socioeconomic factors of micro and small entrepreneurship in ecological production of fruits and vegetables in the Republic of Croatia, reveal main obstacles, as well as opportunities for further development of micro and small entrepreneurship in that sector, and assess, based on research results, current as well as future contributions of micro and small ecological entrepreneurship to local and regional development. The project takes into account innovations in a broad sense, as outcomes of interaction processes among stakeholders. Transfer of technological solutions is an undoubtedly important form of such processes. In earlier research of the Croatian cooperative sector undertaken by the project team, the following pattern has been observed: often, when the operation of a cooperative comes to a standstill, cooperative entrepreneurs are not able to respond with an adequate innovation, whether in management or production ; hence the stagnation, or even failure, of the enterprise would frequently occur. Based on these findings, similar pattern is also expected in micro and small entrepreneurship in ecological production of fruits and vegetables in Croatia, because resources of micro and small enterprises are very limited, which, in turn, limits generation and selection of innovative ideas. Solutions are envisioned in horizontal and vertical integration of micro and small ecological producers, as well as in strengthening mutual connections between micro and small entrepreneurship and the academic community. In that context, this work brings forward preliminary results of the research project.

social innovations ; ecological food production ; horizontal cooperation ; micro and small entrepreneurship ; technological innovations ; vertical cooperation

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