FOOD INDUSTRY IN NEW MEMBER STATES- A COMPARATIVE VIEW ON STRUCTURE, CONDUCT AND PERFORMANCE AND A VIEW AHEAD ON MACRO-POLICIES

The food industries of Eastern European countries are described and evaluated in comparative perspective to the food industry in the European Union as a whole. Enterprises are compara-tively small in terms of turnover, but large in terms of employment. Half of turnover is gener-ated in large enterprises. Investment intensity is low, but foreign direct investment has a high share in investments. The economic performance of the countries is fair in terms of profitabil-ity and development of production, but low with respect to employment development and labour productivity. Poland and the Baltic States Latvia and Lithuania have the best perform-ing food industries. Integration of the New Member States into the European Monetary Union is evaluated with respect to the findings for the food industry and the theory of optimal cur-rency areas