A case study is an in-depth analysis of a specific value-added business. It may be 20 or more pages long. The purpose of the case study is to dig into the inner workings of a business and see what makes it tick. It can also be used to study a business during a transition period.

Below are case studies conducted by AgMRC.

• American Crystal Sugar Company: Diversification in the Corn Sweetener Industry, Kansas State University, 2002 - This case study focuses on a value-added cooperative's experience in diversifying its products during the 1990s.
• American Crystal Sugar Company: Making Ethanol from Sugar Beets?, Greg McKee, North Dakota State University, and Mike Boland, Kansas State University, 2007 - This case study considers various economic factors that impact the supply and demand for ethanol and how sugar beet ethanol is produced. 
• Cass-Clay Creamery: A New Direction for an Old Brand, Gregory McKee, North Dakota State University, and Michael Boland, Kansas State University, 2008 - This case study discusses the options available to a dairy coop that has incurred net income losses for several years. 
• Dakota Growers Pasta: Vertical Integration in Durum Wheat and the Pasta Manufacturing Industry, Kansas State University, 2002 - This case study looks at Dakota Growers Pasta's process of acquiring two additional pasta plants.
• FCStone Group, Inc. Conversion Overview, David Barton and Michael Boland, Kansas State University, 2008 - This case study considers whether the FCStone Group, now a publicly held corporation, would have been better off if it had maintained its co-op structure.
• Gold Kist Conversion Overview, David Barton and Michael Boland, Kansas State University, 2008 - This case study details how Gold Kist, the third largest poultry producer, and Pilgrim’s Pride, the second largest, combined to form the largest poultry producer in the United States.
• Ocean Spray Cranberries at the Crossroads, Kansas State University, 2003 - This case study looks at the governance structure and growth issues facing Ocean Spray.
• Quality Management and Information Transfer in the Cattle Industry, Center for Agriculture and Rural Development, 2002 - This is a case study of the Chariton Valley Beef Alliance.
• South Dakota Soybean Processors: Joint Ventures and Strategy, Kansas State University, 2003 - This case study reviews soybean processing and how one cooperative turned LLC approached strategic alliances.
• South Dakota Soybean Processors Conversion Overview, David Barton and Michael Boland, Kansas State University, 2007 - This case study examines the conversion of South Dakota Soybean Processors from a co-op to an LLC and the resulting benefits.
• Sunkist Growers, Inc.: Refreshing the Brand, Michael Boland and Veronica Pozo, Kansas State University; Daniel Sumner, California Agricultural Issues Center; and Frank H. Buck, Jr., University of California, Davis, 2008 - In this case study, the president and chief executive officer of Sunkist, the world’s largest citrus cooperative, considers how to enhance the company’s competitiveness by reducing costs and improving returns to its grower-members.
• Tree Top: Looking Forward, Michael Boland and Paola Mancia, Kansas State University, and Mykel Taylor, Washington State University, 2007 - The president and chief executive officer of Tree Top, an apple processing cooperative and the world’s largest dried apple producer, reviews the strategic changes that need to be considered to maintain the company’s profitability.
• Value Added Products (VAP) Cooperative, Iowa State University, 2008 - Value Added Products (VAP) Cooperative was started in 2000 with “the idea and a group of 25 wheat farmers who were looking for ways to increase the value of the wheat they grow”.  The wheat grown by VAP is used primarily in pizza dough, with a small percentage used for cinnamon rolls, breads and croissants.
• 21st Century Alliance: Vertical Integration and the Pinto Bean Industry, Kansas State University, 2002 - This study provides insight into the challenges of vertical integration.

Access to more case studies is provided in the box at the right.