The business model of organic companies

Opera distribuita con Licenza Creative Commons. Attribuzione - non commerciale - Non opere derivate 4.0 Internazionale The book titled "The Business Model of organic companies: sustainability approaches through districts" focuses on business models of organic companies operating within districts. Organic farming is experiencing a period of rapid growth: the organic agri-food market in the EU has developed significantly in recent years. Moreover, organic farming has also been recognised for its potential to contribute to environmental protection, rural development and animal welfare. Despite the relevance of the organic sector, there is a lack of detailed studies that focus on organic enterprises and, more specifically, on the key drivers at the basis of their business models that enhance the sustainable value creation process. The business model features and the consequent sustainable economic, social and environmental development of organic companies and of the local territories in which they operate can also be influenced by the presence of organic districts (or organic regions).Also in this case, little is known about such districts and their possible effects and benefits. Based on these premises, the research aims to increase the understanding and knowledge of company business model in the organic sector, both from a theoretical and empirical viewpoint, with a specific focus on sustainability. First, the phenomenon of organic companies and organic districts has been explored, both in Italy and abroad, focusing on the history, regulations and on the state-of-the-art in order to increase knowledge on such topics. Then, an accurate analysis of the existing literature was carried out to identify the defining elements of organic companies business model. Finally, an empirical analysis was carried out to investigate the business model features of a sample of Italian organic companies belonging to organic districts and to understand how organic districts influence the sustainable value creation of companies operating on their territory.