Abstract
The purpose of this article is to identify the fundamental factors that are key determinants in promoting effective operation of Agricultural Production Cooperatives (APCs). A theoretical framework “determinants of APCs’ performance” was used to analyze the links between the webs of factors. A survey method was used to collect data from two southern provinces in Iran. Data were collected from 52 managers and 260 member farmers in 52 APCs using a stratified random sampling method. It is concluded that the theoretical model can to a great extent predict the performance of APCs. Cooperative structure and government support factors are the most important factors explaining the performance of APCs. Also, policy strategies need to focus on conditioning variables that affect the performance of APCs.
