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Background The problem of emerging ciprofloxacin resistance is compounded by its frequent association with multiresistance, the reason for which is not fully understood. In this study we compare multiresistance, clonal similarities and phylogenetic group in urinary tract isolates of Escherichia coli sensitive and resistant to the quinolone antimicrobials nalidixic acid and ciprofloxacin. Results Quinolone resistant isolates were more resistant to non-quinolone antibiotics than sensitive isolates, with resistance to ampicillin, mecillinam, sulphonamide, trimethoprim, tetracycline, kanamycin and chloramphenicol significantly increased. Fifty-one percent of quinolone-resistant isolates were multiresistant. Although multiresistance was most prevalent (63%) in isolates showing high-level ciprofloxacin resistance, it was still highly prevalent (41%) in nalidixic acid resistant isolates with low-level ciprofloxacin resistance. Multiresistance was more frequent among singleton isolates (61%) than clonal isolates (40%) of quinolone resistant Escherichia coli. Ciprofloxacin resistance was associated with certain specific clones, among them the globally distributed clonal Group A. However, there was no significant difference in the overall degree of clonality between quinolone sensitive and resistant isolates. Ciprofloxacin resistance was positively associated with phylogroup D and negatively associated with phylogroup B2. This correlation was not associated with clonal isolates. Conclusion This study supports earlier findings of association between ciprofloxacin resistance and resistance to other antibiotics. The prevalence of multiresistance in quinolone-resistant isolates that have not yet developed high-level ciprofloxacin resistance suggest that multiresistance arises early in the development of quinolone resistance. This is consistent with exposure to quinolones causing quinolone resistance by mutations and mobilization of multiresistance elements by induction of the SOS response. The spread of clones seems to be less important than previously reported in regard to emergence of quinolone resistance and multiresistance as both are associated primarily with singleton isolates.

Why did the establishment of cooperative creameries in late nineteenth-century Ireland fail to halt the relative decline of her dairy industry compared with other emerging producers? This paper compares the Irish experience with that of the market leader, Denmark, and shows how each adopted the cooperative organizational form, and highlights that an important difference was institutional: specifically, regarding the enforcement of vertically binding contracts. We argue that this failure, combined with a strong proprietary sector which was opposed to cooperation, reinforced the already difficult conditions for dairying in Ireland due to poor social capital.

We consider the successful early emergence of cooperative creameries in Denmark in the late nineteenth century within the framework of the “new institutional economics” presented by Oliver Williamson. Previous work focused on the social cohesion of the Danes, but we demonstrate that this was not sufficient for their success. The Danish legal system, which we compare to that of other countries, was also of crucial importance, along with the way in which rules were monitored and enforced. Of particular interest is the Danish cooperatives’ use of contracts, which we explore with evidence from a variety of primary and secondary sources.

The usual story of the 'first era of globalization' at the end of the nineteenth century sees Denmark as something of an outlier: a country which, like the UK, resisted the globalization backlash in the wake of the inflow of cheap grain from the New World, but where agriculture, rather than going into decline, in fact flourished. Key to the success of Danish agriculture was an early diversification towards dairy production. This article challenges this simple story which sees Denmark as something of a liberal paragon. Denmark's success owed much to a prudent use of trade policy which favoured dairy production. Moreover, this favouritism continued even after a more general movement to free trade in the 1860s. Using micro-level data from individual dairies, we quantify the implied subsidy to dairy production from the tariffs, and demonstrate that in many cases this ensured the profitability of individual dairies.

Why did the establishment of cooperative creameries in late nineteenth-century Ireland fail to halt the relative decline of her dairy industry compared with other emerging producers? This paper compares the Irish experience with that of the market leader, Denmark, and shows how each adopted the cooperative organizational form, and highlights that an important difference was institutional: specifically, regarding the enforcement of vertically binding contracts. We argue that this failure, combined with a strong proprietary sector which was opposed to cooperation, reinforced the already difficult conditions for dairying in Ireland due to poor social capital.

We consider the relative contributions of changing technology and institutions for economic growth through the investigation of a natural experiment in history: the almost simultaneous introduction of the automatic cream separator and the cooperative ownership form in the Danish dairy industry from around 1880. Using a new database of statistics from creameries and the tool of stochastic frontier analysis, we find that both institutions and technology were important for the success of the Danish dairy industry and, by implication, the growth and early development of the Danish economy.

The usual story of the ‘first era of globalization’ at the end of the nineteenth century sees Denmark as something of an outlier: a country which, like the UK, resisted the globalization backlash in the wake of the inflow of cheap grain from the New World, but where agriculture, rather than going into decline, in fact flourished. Key to the success of Danish agriculture was an early diversification towards dairy production. This article challenges this simple story which sees Denmark as something of a liberal paragon. Denmark's success owed much to a prudent use of trade policy which favoured dairy production. Moreover, this favouritism continued even after a more general movement to free trade in the 1860s. Using micro‐level data from individual dairies, we quantify the implied subsidy to dairy production from the tariffs, and demonstrate that in many cases this ensured the profitability of individual dairies.

The usual story of the ‘first era of globalization’ at the end of the nineteenth century sees Denmark as something of an outlier: a country which, like the UK, resisted the globalization backlash in the wake of the inflow of cheap grain from the New World, but where agriculture, rather than going into decline, in fact flourished. Key to the success of Danish agriculture was an early diversification towards dairy production. This article challenges this simple story which sees Denmark as something of a liberal paragon. Denmark's success owed much to a prudent use of trade policy which favoured dairy production. Moreover, this favouritism continued even after a more general movement to free trade in the 1860s. Using micro‐level data from individual dairies, we quantify the implied subsidy to dairy production from the tariffs, and demonstrate that in many cases this ensured the profitability of individual dairies.

The paper investigates the initial phase of the cooperative organisation of agricultural processing firms in Denmark. It argues that the variations observed can be explained within the framework of the theory of industrial organisation. The focus is on the success of cooperative creameries. In 1903, twenty years after the first establishments, the owners of about 80 per cent of all Danish milch cows supplied their product to a cooperative. The success of cooperatives within other fields of production was smaller by comparison. The point is that dairying cooperatives, given the existing technology of gathering information and of preserving and transporting a perishable product, were ideally suited to overcome the problems of potential lock-in and of asymmetric information.