The Problem of Geographical Delimitation of Agri-Food Markets: Evidence From the Butter Market in European Union

Although market is a basic economic category, many studies neglect the need to define it in geographical dimension. It is fundamentally important in agribusiness, where the spatial competition and problem of market power at successive stages of supply chain occur. The aims of the paper are twofold: to discuss the problem of geographical delimitation of agricultural markets and to define geographic limits of the butter market based on Elzinga–Hogarty method. Using secondary data we find that the butter market is international in the scope, and after the abolition of the milk quota, this scope is evolving from European to semi-global.