Certification schemes in the European agri-food sector Overview and opportunities for Central and Eastern Europe

Abstract

In the last few years, following a number of food crises, quality assurance systems have been widely introduced into the European agri-food sector. Customers' growing quality demands and their undermined trust in food safety are just two of the driving forces behind this trend. With regard to quality assurance schemes, Central and Eastern European agriculture and food industries are in a catch-up position. To compensate for the lack of research in this field, this paper presents an overview of certification schemes in the European agriculture and food industry with a special emphasis on Central and Eastern Europe. It also discusses the characteristics and scope of the schemes as well as possible determinants and effects of the trend observed in recent years.