Value-chain governance, public regulation and entry barriers in the global fresh fruit and vegetable chain into the EU

Supermarkets' increased sourcing of fresh produce from developing countries has been generally accompanied by a decline in the proportion of this produce accounted for by smaller-scale producers. This follows from supermarkets' growing use of ‘buyer power’ to demand more services and lower prices from suppliers. This article reviews regulatory interventions by public authorities in the EU, South Africa and France that have been aimed, at least indirectly, at restraining ‘buyer power’ to the benfit of smaller-scale producers. Although now politically unfashionable, two of these interventions can be regarded as having had a measure of success.