Abstract
This work analyzes the characteristics and functioning of French cooperative societies of collective interest (Scic) and their possible contributions to the improvement of Brazilian cooperativism. Qualitative in nature, the methodology employs a descriptive and exploratory approach, use of primary and secondary data, visits to social organizations and interviews carried out in France between 2022 and 2023. Since the end of the 19th century, several factors have shaped multi-member cooperatives, in which different types of public form its social framework, practically disappearing from the global cooperative scene. In 2001, the French parliament rescued cooperative multi-society through the Scic law. The results of this investigation indicated that Scic are expanding in French urban and rural spaces, mobilizing individuals and public and private organizations around collective enterprises. Scic are generating innovations in the cooperative statutory model and in the mode of governance, favoring the creation of different types of businesses, many of which are intersectoral in nature and have territorial coverage. It is concluded that an adaptation of this organizational format to the Brazilian legal-institutional framework will stimulate innovative cooperative projects in several areas, with emphasis on initiatives focused on the ecological transition of food systems and the sustainable development of rural territories.
Key words:
Social cooperatives; sustainable territorial development; collective action; multi-corporate cooperatives; food systems