Patterns of on-farm business structure diversification in Greater Copenhagen – farms or firms?

Peri-urban landscapes constitute a dynamic context for traditional agricultural production, presenting both unique opportunities and challenges. The development of on-farm business structure diversification (OFBSD) is a way for farm owners to react to specific production and planning conditions in these areas (ie. proximity to urban markets with a demand for cheap buildings and easy access, services which can frequently be offered by peri-urban farms). In contrast, the increasingly urban-oriented local population and strict planning regulation may pose challenges for OFBSD development. Changing economic conditions and planning legislation will over time facilitate or restrain OFBSD development. Thus, there is a need for knowledge on the drivers and their long term effects for the development of OFBSD on peri-urban farms. OFBSD enterprises do not just grow from external structures and conditions. The development is the result of many individual decisions taken by the existing farm owners/tenants or by newcomers, who have actively identified a business opportunity and started an enterprise in a given location.
In this study, we therefore investigate patterns of OFBSD enterprise development, including ownership, the type of business and their origin, i.e. whether the properties serve as “attractors” for a particular enterprises due to their location and resources or whether an individual, either the property owner or a tenant, was the “initiator” of a particular enterprise. To investigate these questions, we analyze the patterns of OFBSD adoption on 165 properties in Greater Copenhagen collected in a questionnaire survey in 2014 and classify them according to area and building requirements. This broad classification is supplemented by information on owner motives for property purchase and details about owner characteristics. The purpose is to gain a clearer understanding of drivers of change and the possible future role of OFBSD in peri-urban areas.
The results showed that farm assets (buildings and land) are used for OFBSD on more than half of the properties (60%). Storage, office enterprises, construction companies and accommodation are the most common activities, each found on 10-20% of the properties. In terms of property size, OFBSD are less common on very small (< 1 ha) and very large (> 100 ha) properties.
The study also revealed that 34% of the owners were already engaged in the activity prior to the identification and purchase of their property which allowed them to continue with this activity. For others (50%), the economic activity didn't play a major role in the decision to buy the property. Another 10% had the intention to start up the enterprise and were looking for a suitable property while 5% bought a property with an existing activity. Thus, the physical suitability of a property for a given OFBSD was important for almost half of the respondents.
The diversity of OFBSD and related motives poses important challenges for planners