Quality labels and firm survival: some first empirical evidence

European Union regulation on quality food products (protected designations of origin (PDO) labelling) is expected to sustain competitiveness within the agricultural sector. This paper examines the impact of this policy on the survival of cheese firms over the period 19902006 in France. We show that such a policy (Appellation dOrigine Controle) reduces exiting risk for smaller firms. However, smaller firms still have a lower survival rate compared with larger ones that cannot be compensated by the quality label effect.