In or Out: Developing a Categorization of Different Types of Co-Production by Using the Critical Case of Dutch Food Safety Services

Abstract

The understanding of co-production as a concept is fragmented; there are many different definitions and many cases are labeled co-production. Two dimensions seem to be important in most definitions: the ability of the co-producer to self-produce or to produce the same product without input from others and the extent to which co-producers’ participation is voluntary. Based on these dimensions, this article develops a typology of co-production. It is shown that cases in which involuntariness is combined with a high ability of self-production are rare. This article contributes to the literature by studying such a case, namely Dutch food safety services.