Product- en bedrijfschappen (commodity and central industrial boards)

Virtually every sector and line of business within the economy of the Netherlands, is organized. One particular “Dutch” regulatory structure is the so-called commodity or industrial board.

These  boards are also known as “publiekrechtelijke beroepsorganisaties” (the Dutch abbreviation is PBO), and is similar to a public law corporation organization. In the Netherlands there are 17 commodity and central industrial boards (in Dutch: “product- en bedrijfschappen”). The commodity boards (productschappen) represent enterprises that work with the same product. E.g.: from raw material to finished product. The industrial boards (bedrijfschappen) represent enterprises within particular sectors. Such as the retail sector, craftsmanship (and small industries), and the hospitality sector.

These statutory trade organizations are a “Dutch phenomenon”. Although in other countries similar organizations exist, the unique Dutch approach is based on cooperation between employers and employees. This is also reflected in the information provided on their websites. Besides extensive profiles on the lines of business (in Dutch: “branches”) covered by that particular board, the websites of the different boards contain information on matters such as employee training, quality management and control, and joint export promotion.

It is up to every sector to decide whether to install a board. That is why some sectors have boards and others do not. The international readers will discover that most of the websites unfortunately only contain information in Dutch. If however, you will use the information provided on the “contact-page” , most of the boards should be able to provide you with useful English language material (documentation used for export promotion).

The websites of the commodity and central industrial boards, are probably the best sources to start your research for specific sector information. It’s there, (it is however in Dutch), and it’s free!

Bedrijfschappen (for links use this deeplink to the central portal of Dutch government websites)

• Bedrijfschap Afbouw (BA)
• Bedrijfschap Horeca en Catering
• Bedrijfschap voor Bos en Natuur (Bosschap)
• Hoofdbedrijfschap Agrarische Groothandel (HBAG)
• Hoofdbedrijfschap Ambachten (HBA) 
• Hoofdbedrijfschap Detailhandel (HBD)

Productschappen (for links use this deeplink to the central portal of Dutch government websites)

• Hoofdproductschap Akkerbouw
• Productschap Akkerbouw
• Productschap Diervoeder
• Productschap Dranken 
• Productschap Margarine, Vetten en Oliën
• Productschap Tuinbouw
• Productschappen Vee, Vlees en Eieren (PVE)
• Productschap Vis
• Productschap Wijn 
• Productschap Zuivel

For further information on commodity and industrial boards, please visit the website of the Social and Economic Council of the Netherlands (SER). The SER is an advisory and consultative body of employers’ representatives, union representatives and independent experts, and also responsible for supervising various boards, including the 17 commodity and central industrial boards.

Link résumé:

• Productschappen: http://almanak.overheid.nl/categorie/136/Productschappen/
• Bedrijfschappen: http://almanak.overheid.nl/categorie/135/Bedrijfschappen/
• SER: http://www.ser.nl