As for the specific nature of the groups, these services are obviously also offered by certain private businesses. What distinguishes the services of our groups is the collective approach. For 30 years, we have made many visits to member and non-member businesses. We also have information and exchange activities. The educational component is very important to us.
Comparative analysis is one of our services. For example, once we have identified the production costs for each of the farms, it is useful to compare with other businesses in the same sector. These are what we call comparative analyses. We identify a top group, made up of the most effective businesses offering the best performance, and a bottom group to observe the differences between them.
These analyses provide an external point of view. Within the business, the producer doesn't always see the problems the same way that a consultant who adopts an external point of view does. That point of view helps the producer make better decisions about projects. It is also a preventative approach, rather than a corrective one, because we can identify the difficulties in advance and take steps to correct them.
In essence, it involves overall management of the business, an annual follow-up and ongoing improvement of the business' performance. The groups do not make just one visit to each farm. They can return to see the farm year after year and see the business evolve. This makes it possible for us to have more competitive businesses and producers who are in a better position to make good decisions. The decisions rest on the producers' data and not only on means.