A Guatemalan soycow cooperative: is the whole greater than the sum of its parts?

The introduction of soycow systems into the developing world is not a new strategy in the fight against malnutrition. Soycows have been placed in diverse locations including VietNam, India, South Africa, Honduras, and Guatemala. The success of these projects is not guaranteed, and often the soycows are not used after the initial supply of soybeans is exhausted. One of the main issues impeding long-term success of the soycow projects is that recipients may possess technical knowledge enabling them to operate the soycow, but generally lack the intangible, human resources that could provide the requisite marketing know-how needed for these projects to survive long-term. This case was developed to foster case-based teaching methods for course instruction while providing a unique context for the examination of managerial decision making.