Heterogeneity in Technology and Efficiency – Specifics of the Food Processing Industry in the Visegrád Countries

The paper analyses the food processing industry in Visegrád countries. In particular, it deals with the analysis of heterogeneity in technology and efficiency. The introduced theoretical framework allows to capture inter- and intrasectoral differences in technology as well as the country specifics. The results show that both intersectoral heterogeneity and heterogeneity among firms are an important characteristic of EU food processing industry. Moreover, the country specific effects were pronounced for Czech, Hungarian and Polish dairy sector, Czech feedstuff sector, Polish, Hungarian and Slovak slaughtering sector. Moreover, we found that on average the food processing companies highly exploit their production possibilities. However, some food processing companies are falling behind. This holds for Slaughtering and Dairy sector in all Visegrád countries.