aspect on the back burner / to the background . On the other hand , Umbrian EPGs have a different point of view for what concerns the quality of the products . The assessment and the certification of biological products are both secondary aspects , the quality of the products is preferably personally verified and guaranteed by the link of confidence between consumer and producer .
What are EPG ’ s needs ?
The central core of a Purchasing Group is a group of citizens who joins in an association with the purpose of contacting producers and buying the products they need directly , without intermediaries . Avoiding all the passages of great production and purchasing a great quantity of products , the Purchasing Groups achieve their primary goal : to buy / buying the products needed at a considerably lower price compared with the great distribution .
From this point of view , Equal Purchasing Groups , or EPGs , seem to be not very different from simple Purchasing Groups , both share the choice of joining in a group , the choice of establishing a direct connection with producers ( and the related possibility of bargain ), and the expectation of saving money thanks to big orders and the abatement of the costs . Through the implementation of focus groups , it was possible to deduce the differences between the aims of these two . The most evident difference resides in the acceptation “ Equal ”. The principal interest of EPGs is represented by the products purchase , “ paying attention to the equal and sustainable side of economy , nearer to the real needs of human beings and of environment , so creating a new critic consumer ’ s ethic ” 1 . There is a shift of attention from the price and the brand of the product towards demands such as :
� Personal and family health tutelage ;
� Environment ’ s safeguard ;
� Producers ’ and workers ’ tutelage : there is an agreement about an “ equal reward ”, which acknowledges and valorises the work ’ s quality and quantity ;
� Attention to the local production : EPGs are basically addressed to small producers , out of the Large-Scale Retail Trade and often in economic difficulties ;
� Direct acquaintance : consumers and producers establish a relationship based on reciprocal confidence ;
1 http :// www . retegas . org / upload / dl / dicono / 2007-06-16 _ Filiere % 20corte % 20e % 20alternative . pdf , pag . 3 .
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