Name: Tamara Miletic Organisation: Municipality of Verteneglio Place: Verteneglio, Croatia
Tamara mentored EPG members in the Verteneglio region of Croatia who were willing to start up a social enterprise to enhance their EPG’ s sustainability and competitiveness. Although the social start up process and its methodological tools were warmly received and appreciated, an agreement on whether or not organic and non-organic producers could be members of the same social enterprise could not be reached. Thus the challenging dialogue between the organic and nonorganic producers continues.
During the mentor training, participants were encouraged to identify inspirational examples of EPGs and / or social enterprises so they can use these when they are implementing their training programmes. The following are the examples selected by the mentors trained on this programme.
Inspirational Example of a French Cooperative of Producers: Hop ' la
Hop ' la is a collective salepoint of farm products. Powered by a cooperative of 27 local producers, our direct sales store is characterized by a particular operation.
A cooperative
Producers are required to carry a minimum of permanence in the month and alternatively, in turn, the store manager. A producer can sell, advice and direct talk about his product to the consumer but it is also aware and concerned by the products of his colleagues. Favor the collective and the close relationship also means that the spirit of Hop ' la!
Beef, poultry, pork, fish, dairy products, fruits, vegetables, honey, herbs, flowers, cheese, mushrooms, wine, preserves, beer, oils, syrups, brandies, etc. Each producer offers different products, avoiding competition between them.
Pricing policy
The Hop ' la prices are equivalent to those on the other direct sales sites which most producers use( markets, direct to the farm). Each producer is responsible for their own profits and losses and ensures maintaining optimal value.
Hop ' la is primarily a collective. 12