Revealing governance forms: the case of French agrifood platforms

Abstract

PurposeAgrifood platforms are now part of consumption habits. They have emerged in various forms, and we need to describe this diversity to understand better how platforms manage their relationships with farmers. We aim to understand the governance forms of agrifood platforms and consider whether they comply with the principles of transaction cost economics (TCE).Design/methodology/approachBased on a survey of 103 French platform managers, a two-step cluster analysis and ordered logit regressions were applied to test hypotheses derived from the theory.FindingsThe results enable us to propose a refined typology of eight governance forms for the farmer-platform relationship. These different forms can be classified according to a continuum ranging from “market to hierarchy”, conforming to TCE principles. We define a gradient describing how the platforms manage their relations with the farmers through contractual and relational control. We show that specific assets, behavioural uncertainty, and membership in a platform network are associated with more integrated governance forms.Practical implicationsThe article describes the different forms of platform governance and their relevance to market conditions. This clarification is necessary for farmers to elect the more suitable platform and for platform managers to create a new business or improve its efficiency.Originality/valueThis article is the first to offer a detailed typology of agrifood platform governance. It highlights these governance characteristics and their relationship with transaction attributes.