An Investigation of Factors that Influence the Survival of Contracts in the DOCa Rioja Wine Industry

This study applied a multi-theoretical perspective to explore factors that determine the duration of continuing supply relationships between grape processors and growers. Our empirical study employed hazard rate models with time-varying covariates, using data from supply contracts between wineries and growers in the DOCa Rioja wine industry. We found evidence that rates of contract termination: (1) decrease with the level of site-specificity in the processor-grower relationship; (2) increase with the existence of market uncertainty; (3) decrease with the existence of monitoring; and (4) increase (rather than decrease) over time.