Agricultural Consumer Cooperatives Research Articles

Современное состояние и тенденции развития сельскохозяйственной потребительской кооперации

Today, small forms of management in the Russian agro-industrial complex occupy a significant share in the structure of producers for certain groups of agricultural raw materials and food. Institutional transformations that have taken place over decades in the agro-industrial complex have shown the viability of such a form of organization as agricultural cooperation. The advantages that determine the competitiveness of cooperation include reducing transaction costs, economies of scale, increasing the share of rural producers in the final price of products, etc. Modern socio-economic trends dictate new conditions for the formation of food chains and the participation of economic entities in them. In this connection, there is an urgent need to analyze trends in the development of agricultural consumer cooperation. This will make it possible to determine strategic directions for development and justify relevant measures of state support for both small business forms themselves and the cooperative form of their organization. The purpose of the study is to comprehensively analyze and substantiate the development trends of the institution of agricultural consumer cooperation, as the most important component of ensuring food security in Russia in modern conditions. Achieving this goal involves the use of general scientific methods of cognition (historical and logical, comparative and system-structural) and traditional methods of economic analysis. The trends in the development of the Institute of Agricultural Consumer Cooperation have been studied. A comprehensive analysis of the competitive advantages and weaknesses of small business forms in the agro-industrial complex was carried out. The potential for growth of the institution of agricultural consumer cooperation in the conditions of transformation of the socio-economic space has been identified. The experience of supporting agricultural cooperatives in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation was studied. Measures of state support for the development of this institution that are relevant to current trends in economic development are substantiated. The results of the study and the conclusions drawn on their basis will be useful for supporting management decisions in the field of development of the agro-industrial complex, increasing the efficiency of planning and implementing state support for the small business sector in the agro-industrial complex

Влияние межмуниципальной кооперации на результаты деятельности малых форм хозяйствования на селе

The continuation of sanctions pressure on the Russian economy and, in particular, on the agricultural sector, contributes to the intensification of additional research to overcome negative consequences of this pressure. In these conditions, the role of increasing self-sufficiency in the main ranges of agricultural products in the country increases, including the supply of agricultural producers with the necessary material and technical resources to comply with technological production processes. A significant place in this is given to small forms of farming using the advantages of agricultural cooperation. The article examines the progressive development of agricultural consumer cooperatives in the Republic of Bashkortostan, identifies problems of functioning and ways to solve them in the conditions of existing situations. It is concluded that it is advisable to strengthen and expand intermunicipal and interregional cooperative ties, which will allow agricultural producers to influence the increase in production and promotion of products; reduce the pressure of various intermediary structures, as well as achieve higher economic and social results of their activities.

The State and Development of Peasant Farms on the Example of the Penza Region

Introduction. The development of small forms of farming and their part in the food supply plays a crucial role in the agricultural sector of the economy. Peasant arms, like agricultural organizations, present suppliers of agricultural products on the regional mar-ket. The purpose of the study is to substantiate the directions for the development of peasant farms, as an important source of development and strengthening of rural areas. Materials and methods. We analyzed the state and development of small businesses in the Penza region on the basis of statistical data for 2010, 2019-2021. The theoretical ba-sis was provided by literary sources on the development of small forms of farming in the agro-industrial complex and state support for small agricultural businesses. The follow-ing research methods were used: systematic, monographic, comparison, economic and statistical. Results. The analysis of small agribusiness in the Penza region revealed that the development of peasant farms in the production of crop and livestock products has a positive trend, but at the same time the share of agricultural products of this category of farms in the gross output in the region as a whole decreases. There is a low percentage of peasant farms selling potatoes, vegetables, livestock and poultry, and milk. To solve the problem of marketing manufactured products, it is necessary, in our opinion, to unite peasant farms and create agricultural consumer cooperatives, which is possible with real government support. The main form of support for farmers is grant support. Conclusions. Small business requires human resources to introduce innovative, digital technologies in farm production.

Financial mechanism of state support for agricultural cooperatives in the Republic of Tatarstan

The article reflects the elemental composition of the financial mechanism of state support of agricultural consumer cooperatives. For example, in 2023, the total number of applicants for grant support in the form of the project "Agrostartup" in the Republic amounted to 76, support in the aggregate amount of 49.9 million rubles received 12 projects. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Tatarstan, in 2023, 215 applications for subsidies from various agricultural cooperatives were submitted in the Republic, targeted assistance was provided to 74 applicants. However, the authors point out that the potential of commercial lending to agricultural consumer cooperatives is not exhausted and should be based on: the development of project and investment lending; reduction of the time of consideration of applications; the possibility of collateral in the form of goods in circulation; issuance of guarantees and the possibility of pledging property from the collateral fund of the Union of Consumer Cooperative Organizations of the Republic of Tatarstan. Agriculture of the Republic of Tatarstan demonstrates a steady growth, the achievement of which is due in no small measure to the comprehensive state support, which positively affects the socio-economic development. The average share of profitable agricultural enterprises for 2019-2023 amounted to more than 90%, which reflects high economic efficiency.

Revision control of increased share contributions in agricultural consumer cooperatives

This article reveals approaches to implementing audit control of the formation of incremental share contributions of members of agricultural consumer cooperatives and their payment. The presented results of the study, contradictions of existing regulatory legislation in the field of distribution of profits by non-profit organizations. The scheme for the formation of a converted share from the profit of an agricultural consumer cooperative is reflected. A model for checking the correctness of the formation of an incremental share in an agricultural consumer cooperative has been constructed, and approaches to checking compliance with the legally established requirements for their payment have been analyzed. Working documents for the auditor-consultant were developed. The recommendations presented in the article can be used in developing rules for conducting audit control procedures in audit unions.

Состояние и тенденции развития личных подсобных хозяйств региона

Annotation. The purpose of the study is to identify trends in the development of personal subsidiary plots of the population of the Tyumen region. Objectives: 1) to determine the dynamics of agricultural production by household households of the population for the period 2016–2021; 2) to consider changes in the structure of management of private household plots in the region. To achieve the goal, data collected from various open sources of state authorities, the Federal State Statistics Service, as well as reference and regulatory materials were used. The research methods were the methods of questioning, interviewing, comparison, analysis of socio-economic processes, content analysis and the statistical method. The scientific novelty lies in the systematization and classification of disparate information on the functioning of regional private household plots, which made it possible to identify the main trends: an increase in agricultural production by private subsidiary plots of the population, changes in the structure of household plots, an increase in the number of families involved in private plots. The results consist in supplementing the established terminology with new essential features. The article contains an analysis of the indicators of agricultural production of household plots in the Tyumen region. The place of private farms in the production of agricultural products is determined, the specialization of production is reflected. Based on the data of the author's survey, the article states that household plots are an economically profitable occupation, as they provide families with food, act as a source of income and employment. In addition, it was concluded that family farms are focused on the closed type of household plots, but aimed at interacting with agricultural consumer cooperatives. It was determined that there is a lack of awareness among villagers about the measures of state support for household plots. This circumstance indicates the need not only for state support, but also for further cooperation and integration of private household plots into the territorial economic system, including through education and training of family farm owners.

ASSESSMENT OF QUALITATIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SOCIAL AND LABOR SPHERE OF THE VILLAGE OF THE KRASNOYARSK REGION

The article discusses the results of monitoring the social and labour sphere of the village of the Krasnoyarsk Territory in assessing the financial situation of rural households and the problems that concern rural residents to the greatest extent. The study was conducted in the economic crisis and socio-psychological climate. As a result, the rural population assesses its financial situation quite self-critically and believes that, most likely, it will remain unchanged. However, a fascinating fact is that, despite the low-income level of rural residents, most respondents are not going to take part in agricultural consumer cooperatives, cannot or do not want to organise their businesses and are not oriented towards small business. However, residents generally do not plan to move to the city; in the event of a job loss, they will try to get any other job in the countryside. Therefore, it is proposed to evaluate the qualitative characteristics of the social and labour sphere of the village using the “social scale” methodology, consisting of six stages, starting with the selection of the necessary qualitative indicators and their grouping, interviewing rural residents, converting respondents’ answers into numerical values, placing weighting coefficients and interpreting the results. Finally, it is concluded that the main directions of state policy in the development of the social and labour sphere of the village should be: increasing the level and effectiveness of state support for agricultural producers, developing small businesses and cooperation, and increasing employment through non-agricultural activities and self-employment. Along with these measures, it is recommended to provide social support to low-income citizens by expanding the scope of social contracts and implementing a targeted food assistance project.

ОЦЕНКА РАЗВИТИЯ АГРОПРОМЫШЛЕННОГО КОМПЛЕКСА РОССИИ И МЕРЫ СТИМУЛИРОВАНИЯ ЕГО ИНВЕСТИЦИОННОЙ АКТИВНОСТИ

The agro-industrial complex, producing products vital for society, is one of the most important components of the economy of the Russian Federation. The study was conducted to assess the development of the agro-industrial complex and measures to stimulate its investment activity. The largest area of the agro-industrial complex is agriculture, the sustainable development of which is a priority for the state to ensure the country’s food security. Thanks to state support, the agro-industrial complex is demonstrating steady growth. However, problems remain in the industry, the solution of which will strengthen the role and quality of the main directions of the state agrarian policy of the country. Creating a favorable investment climate in the agro-industrial complex is an effective way to develop the industries included in its structure. Measures to stimulate investment activity include: modernization and replacement of production facilities; provision of preferential terms for lending and leasing for participants in the agro-industrial complex; tax incentives; grant support for agricultural producers, agricultural consumer cooperatives, peasants, farms, individual entrepreneurs producing agricultural products; creation of agro-industrial parks. The practice of applying the unified agricultural tax for 2011-2021 in Russia, including in the context of federal districts, showed that, despite the reduction in the number of those applying this taxation regime, there is an increase in the amount of tax calculated. For the development of the agro-industrial complex, it is necessary to introduce non-financial instruments of state support.

Diversification of the rural economy as a factor of their sustainable development (by the example of the south- and north-eastern regions of the Republic of Bashkortostan)

Diversification of the rural economy is one of the priorities of their sustainable development. This is reflected in the state program «Integrated Rural Development» for 2020–2025 approved on June 4, 2019. In accordance with this and other federal programs, rural development programs are also being developed at the level of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. In the Republic of Bashkortostan, the state program «Integrated development of rural Territories of the Republic of Bashkortostan» (as amended on December 8, 2020) was approved by the Decree of the Government of the Republic of Bashkortostan No. 728 dated December 12, 2019, which replaced the subprogram «Sustainable development of rural territories of the Republic of Belarus until 2020» of the state program «Development of agriculture and regulation of agricultural markets products, raw materials and food in the Republic of Belarus». In addition, on the instructions of the Government of the Republic of Bashkortostan, the Institute of Socio-Economic Research of the Ufa Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences has developed two sub-regional programs for the development of depressed south- and north-eastern regions of the region for 2011–2015 (extended until 2024). Within the framework of this article, the expediency of their adjustment and inclusion in them of promising projects for the diversification of the rural economy — new «points of growth» in relation to specific municipal areas, which are various areas of the processing industry, small and medium-sized businesses, tourism, folk crafts and crafts, agricultural production and consumer cooperation. The inclusion of proposals for the development of ethnic entrepreneurship and ethnic cooperation, ethnic brands of the Trans-Urals and the North-East of the Republic of Bashkortostan in the programs is being updated.

Agricultural Consumer Cooperation of the Saratov Region: Experience and Problems of Development

The state and directions of development of agricultural consumer cooperation in the Saratov region are analyzed, the experience of individual cooperatives in various fields of activity is presented. The directions and effectiveness of the use of state support funds for the development of the SOC are given. Proposals have been developed for the development of cooperation in the countryside and the improvement of the activities of cooperatives.

КЛАСТЕРНЫЙ ПОДХОД В РАЗВИТИИ СУБЪЕКТОВ МАЛОГО АГРОБИЗНЕСА

The number of small agricultural business entities includes agricultural enterprises of various organizational and legal forms (with the exception of state and municipal enterprises, dependent and subsidiaries and partnerships), as well as agricultural consumer cooperatives, peasant (farmer) households, and household households. At present, the small agricultural business of the Republic of Tatarstan is represented by over 470 thousand personal, about 3 thousand farms and more than 300 agricultural consumer cooperatives. Personal subsidiary farms use 
 1 499.3 thousand hectares of agricultural land, and private farms own more than 312 thousand hectares of arable land, or 9% of the area of the entire arable land of the republic. If we consider the share of small agribusiness entities in the structure of the region's economy, then almost half of the gross agricultural output falls on them. To improve the efficiency of small agribusiness, the further development of small enterprises is associated with their clustering. This article examines the advantages of the cluster approach in the activities of small agricultural businesses. The clustering of small agribusiness entities opens up more opportunities for expanded production. Small enterprises that are members of the agro-industrial cluster increase their competitiveness and position in the commodity market. Functioning within clusters can contribute to the production of goods, endowing them with other properties and, accordingly, conquering new market niches. The stable development of regions, economic growth in production in many areas of the agro-industrial complex in recent years create real prerequisites for the creation of local clusters. Compared to Russia, in developed countries, clusters have been created for decades and, importantly, they show real profitability, as well as the inclusion of organizations in such clusters contribute to the exchange of experience in doing business. For the further development of small businesses, it is necessary to use a cluster approach, the advantages of which are the expansion of sales markets for products, the full cycle of production of finished products, savings with large volumes of purchases.

Структурно-функциональные модели обработки информации в вертикальных бизнес-процессах в системе управления сельскохозяйственными потребительскими снабженческо-сбытовыми кооперативами

The management system of agricultural consumer supply and marketing cooperatives is considered. This system is a structure containing three levels of hierarchy: the first level includes control elements; the second level contains agricultural business representatives of the middle level; the third level includes agricultural producers. The article shows that the business processes of the agricultural producer and in his interaction with customers are end-to-end. The paper describes the flows of informational and material nature from an agricultural consumer supply and marketing cooperative (an integrator farm) to a personal subsidiary plot and from a personal subsidiary plot to an agricultural consumer supply and marketing cooperative (an integrator farm). Four structural and functional models of an agricultural consumer supply and marketing cooperative are created: one which is organised on the basis of an integrator farm; one which has an associated member, that is a processing enterprise; one which includes credit or insurance agricultural consumer cooperatives; one which sells products through chain stores. The analysis of the information exchange mechanisms during the agricultural producers’ integration is carried out. Moving material and financial flows within the models are presented. It is shown that the created models are necessary for developing route maps of business processes for reporting information in business logics language.

The legal nature of accession agreements on the example of budget subsidy and budget loan agreements with the participation of agricultural consumer cooperatives

The legal nature of accession agreements on the example of budget subsidy and budget loan agreements with the participation of agricultural consumer cooperatives

ИНСТИТУЦИОНАЛЬНЫЕ АСПЕКТЫ УПРАВЛЕНИЯ РАЗВИТИЕМ СЕЛЬСКОХОЗЯЙСТВЕННОЙ ПОТРЕБИТЕЛЬСКОЙ КООПЕРАЦИИ

The experience of almost all the leading economies of the world testifies to the exceptional importance of vertical cooperation in ensuring the effective development of the agricultural sector. However, after more than a quarter of a century of its formation, the influence of the modern Russian analogue of this form in the face of agricultural consumer cooperation on the sphere of domestic agricultural production is at best barely noticeable. The main reasons for this situation lie in the imperfection and inefficiency of the institutional component of the management of the cooperative sector. The individual provisions of legislative acts that are put into effect often contradict each other, and sometimes the essential foundations of cooperation. There are cases of lack of consistency of management decisions taken by various executive structures, cases of incoherence of implemented measures at the federal and regional levels, etc. Classification of management institutions of agricultural consumer cooperation based on the proposed methodological approach, combining their grouping by the nature of the impact on incentives and the way of functioning, can be useful as a tool for analyzing and evaluating the effectiveness of these institutions. The criteria of usefulness of management institutions of the cooperative segment of the economy are defined, the generalized indicator of which is the focus on creating favorable conditions for the realization of the advantages of the form due to its essential foundations. The expediency of involving cooperative self-government bodies in the real management of the development of cooperation, including, among other things, delegating certain functions to them, including in the distribution of a certain part of the budget support funds, is argued. The necessity of developing theoretical provisions on the location and stability of the dividing line between the functions of public administration and cooperative self-government is substantiated.

INTERMUNICIPAL AND INTERREGIONAL COOPERATION AND ITS ROLE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ETHNIC ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN RURAL AREAS

One of the priorities of modern state policy in relation to rural territories is the development of small and medium-sized enterprises, peasant (farmer) and personal subsidiary farms, agricultural production and consumer cooperation. However, Russian small and medium-sized agribusinesses are now actively developing mainly in the sphere of trade and traditional branches of agriculture: crop production, dairy and beef cattle breeding. Rural entrepreneurship has not yet received proper development in the field of processing agricultural products, forestry, and a number of other branches of the rural economy, including in the field of ethnic business. In the frames of this article, the need for the development of intermunicipal and interregional cooperation in the field of ethnic entrepreneurship of the Republic of Bashkortostan is actualized, which is considered as a "point of growth", one of the promising directions of diversification and clustering of the economy of depressive and subsidized rural areas, increasing incomes and employment of villagers. On the example of specific south- and north-eastern regions of Bashkortostan, the prospects of organizing agricultural production and consumer cooperatives of the second and third levels as a factor of clustering of agro- and ethnic business of a village are analyzed.

Book review: Morris Altman, Anthony Jensen, Akira Kurimoto, Robby Tulus, Yashavantha Dongre and Seungkwon Jang (Eds.): Waking the Asian Pacific Co-operative Potential

“Is it possible to identify a regional cooperative model (or models) of the Asia Pacific region?” With 23 case studies across 11 countries and four cooperative sectors (agricultural cooperatives, consumer cooperatives, credit cooperatives and worker cooperatives), the 44 authors of "Waking the Asian Pacific Co-operative Potential" boldly try to answer this question. This voluminous book with around 400 pages-a valuable fruit of a long and collective adventure of cooperative researchers in the Asia-Pacific region-was stimulated and constructed by dynamics around regional conferences of the International Cooperative Alliance Asia-Pacific Committee on Cooperative Research (ICAAP CCR).

МОДЕРНИЗАЦИЯ СИСТЕМЫ СЕЛЬСКОХОЗЯЙСТВЕННОЙ КООПЕРАЦИИ НА ОСНОВЕ ПРИМЕНЕНИЯ ЛИЗИНГА

Subject. Increasing the competitiveness of the agricultural cooperation system through the modernization of the material base based on the use of leasing relations.
 Purpose. To conduct a comprehensive multifactorial analysis of various aspects to create competitive advantages of agricultural enterprises based on the modernization of the technical base and the use of leasing transactions. The study of the factors of creating competitive advantages of agricultural cooperatives by determining the main priority areas of development. Possible ways to increase the competitiveness of consumer societies.
 Methodology. The presented article is based on the generalization of statistical and empirical data, analysis of materials provided by the Tatpotrebsoyuz of the Republic of Tatarstan and individual cooperative organizations. The authors critically processed the results of their own research, as well as the scientific research of authors dealing with the problems of the cooperative movement, including A.R. Nabieva[1], E. G. Zhulina and I. V. Kuznetsova [5]. A.I.Klimenko[6]. The peculiarities of the use of leasing instruments are reflected in the works of M.I. Zakharova [10], E.A.Fomina [11].
 Results. The main results of the study are the identification of factors affecting the insufficient competitiveness of agricultural cooperation enterprises, as well as measures recommended for the technical modernization of the consumer cooperation system. In particular, by using the instruments of leasing operations.
 Scope of application. The results of the study can be used by enterprises, agricultural cooperatives, municipal authorities, leasing market participants, as well as research and educational organizations in the analysis of the directions of development of agricultural cooperation
 Conclusions and Relevance. In the proposed article, the issues of the development of the system of agricultural consumer cooperation were investigated through the prism of increasing competitiveness due to the technical re-equipment of enterprises. The authors conducted monitoring of the economic activity of the cooperative, analyzed the factors affecting the competitiveness of enterprises, and proposed recommendations for its improvement.

Региональный опыт поддержки развития сельскохозяйственной потребительской кооперации

The development of agricultural consumer cooperation in Russia is one of the main tasks of national food security. The research objective was to analyze the current state of agricultural consumer cooperation in the Lipetsk region, Altai Territory, and the Republic of Tatarstan, as well as their development prospects
 The research featured agricultural consumer cooperatives and their market environment. It was based on empirical methods, analysis, synthesis, modeling, and abstraction.
 The paper introduces various patterns of formation and development of agricultural cooperation at the regional level. In the Lipetsk region, the number of agricultural consumer cooperatives was found to increase every year. The regional three-level system for managing the development of “region – district – settlement” cooperation proved to be very effective, as did the local cooperation development institutions. The Altai territory appeared to have implemented a pilot model of agricultural consumer cooperation. This model allows cattle farmers who received financial support from the Agrostartup to sell their products to a cooperative. In the Republic of Tatarstan, agricultural consumer cooperation is based on models that are specific for each area.
 The Lipetsk region appeared to be on the cutting edge of cooperation development. The three-level management they use coordinates the efforts of local authorities and regional governments in the chain “settlement – district – region”. This integrated approach provides an effective regional system of agricultural consumer cooperation in the Russian Federation.

THE POTENTIAL FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF CONSUMER COOPERATION IN DAIRY CATTLE BREEDING IN THE REGION

The article provides a literary review of the development of consumer cooperation in milk production, identifies municipalities of the Altai Territory with different potential for the development of cooperation of small forms of management in dairy cattle breeding. It is shown that in conditions of a decrease in the number of cows in all categories of management, the proportion of municipalities in the region with the highest and highest potential for the development of consumer cooperation increases. The activity of six agricultural consumer cooperatives in certain rural areas of the region does not allow for the coverage of consumer cooperation in most of the municipal districts with a high potential for the development of joint activities of small business entities in the field of milk production. It is noted that consumer cooperation in agriculture develops only with state support and the presence of initiative entrepreneurs, and in areas with a suitable agrarian structure for the formation of non-profit associations of milk producers, it is still necessary to develop the necessary infrastructure, conduct organizational and educational work.

Organization of accounting for state support funds (in the form of subsidies, grants and other types) in agricultural consumer cooperatives

The article discusses some features of the methodological aspects of the organization of accounting and disclosure in the accounting statements of the allocated funds of state support to agricultural consumer cooperatives. Approaches to structuring information about state support in agriculture are outlined.