Food safety standards and international supply chain organization: A case study of the Moroccan fruit and vegetable exports

This paper addresses the issue of international food supply chain organization faced to food safety standards. The case of Moroccan fruit and vegetable supply chain is taken as an example. The dynamics of Moroccan food safety legislation and regulatory systems and the measures taken to facilitate export ex-ante compliance capacity with target market requirements are analysed. The results of a direct survey on producers/exporters in the Souss Massa Region are presented. Operators are classified according to the typology of vertical linkages in producers/exporters, pure exporters, and cooperatives. The relations among the typology of operators, targets markets, prevailing modes for food safety governance, and compliance costs and benefits with food safety standards are discussed. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.