Food System Dynamics (E-Journals)
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What Drives Marketing and Organizational Innovation in the Food Industry? A Comparison between Italy and Germany
Get PDFIn the food industry low amounts of capital are invested in innovation and R&D and companies are mainly engaged in developing product and process innovations in order to keep up with continuously changing consumer preferences. Notwithstanding, marketing and organizational innovation are becoming pivotal for food companies in order to specifically meet these preferences, and develop new business practices which allow them to implement successful external relationships aimed at a greater and successful innovation activity.In this regard, the present paper aims to shed lights on the determinants of both types of non-technological innovations in two of the largest EU food and drink producers by turnover and value added: Italy and Germany. To this purpose, an econometric analysis is run using microdata of the Community Innovation Survey (CIS) carried out in 2012.Results highlight that, apart from some significant differences concerning the role of knowledge sources, training activities represent a relevant driver for both marketing and organizational innovations in both countries
Extreme Weather and Global Agricultural Markets: Experimental Analysis of the Impacts of Heat Waves on Wheat Markets
Get PDFExtreme-weather events frequently drive production fluctuations, price volatility, and hence uncertainty on agricultural commodity markets. Simulation models of global agriculture typically assume normal weather in deterministic scenarios, contain no explicit parameterization of weather elements on the supply side, and confound multitudinous sources of yield fluctuation in exogenous yield shocks. As a part of a wider project on extreme events modelling, in this paper we present the experimental design of a first attempt to explicitly parameterize extreme weather into a partial equilibrium model of global agriculture (Aglink-Cosimo). We outline the main model additions and present preliminary estimates of wheat yield-to-heat elasticities for key regions. We also present the potential wheat market impacts from a counterfactual heat-wave scenario in Australia. Finally, we outline ongoing and future work on multi-scenario analysis in the context of extreme weather and global markets
Public Acceptance of Antibiotic Use in Livestock Production Canada and Germany
Get PDFThe use of antibiotics in livestock production has repeatedly been in the dock over the last few years. However, reducing antibiotic treatments without increasing the suffering of animals requires changes in animal husbandry practices which will likely come at a cost. The objective of the paper is to investigate the factors influencing consumers’ willingness to consume products of animals that have been treated with antibiotics, their willingness to pay for a considerable reduction in the use of antibiotics and their willingness to consider animal welfare in the context of ‘antibiotic free’ livestock production. The study is based on an online survey of citizens in Germany and Canada, conducted in October 2016. The results reveal differences in the individual’s willingness to consume livestock products from animals treated with antibiotics between Canada and Germany with lower acceptance rates in the latter. Results also show that in both countries individuals with higher concerns about the treatment of animals more strongly reject the use of antibiotics in livestock production. This might indicate that consumers are not aware that banning antibiotics in livestock production might have negative repercussions for animal welfare
Well-informed Consumer? How do Different Consumer Groups Handle Online Information on German Animal Welfare Initiatives?
Get PDFIn January 2015, German trade and industry announced to support the national animal welfare initiative “Initiative Tierwohl” (ITW) which stands for a more sustainable and animal-friendly meat production. A web content analysis shows that the ITW initiative has been widely picked up and discussed by online media and that user comments are quite heterogeneous. The current study identifies different types of consumers through factor and cluster analysis and is based on an online survey as well as face-to-face interviews. According to our results, the identified consumer groups demonstrate a rather passive comment behaviour on the internet. In fact, the internet was hardly mentioned as an information source for meat production; consumers more frequently referred to brochures, leaflets and personal contacts with sales personnel
Proceedings in System Dynamics and Innovation in Food Networks 2017
No full textProceedings of the 11thInternational European Forum on System Dynamics and Innovation in Food Networks, organized by the International Center for Food Chain and Network Research, University of Bonn, Germany, February 13-17, 2017, Innsbruck-Igls, Austriaofficially endorsed by EAAE(European Association of Agricultural Economists) IFAMA (International Food and Agribusiness Management Assoc.)AIEA2 (Assoc. Intern. di Economia Alimentare e Agro-Industriale)CIGR (Intern. Commission of Agric. and Biosystems Engineering)INFITA (Intern. Network for IT in Agric., Food and the Environment
Strengthening Farmers’ Bargaining Power in the New CAP
Get PDFThe food supply chain plays a substantial role in the European economy. Agricultural markets are highly interdependent and competition at different stages of the supply chain matters for the overall functioning of the entire food sector. Welfare and distributional implications of competition at any stage of the food supply chain concern several ‘weak subjects’ such as small farmers and consumers who negotiate with “strong subjects” operating in more concentrated (industrial and retailing) sectors. In order to balance power across the EU agro-food supply chain and achieve a more sustainable distribution of value-added, the main instruments featuring the new paradigm of market organisation proposed by the CAP reform are Producer Organisation, Association Producer Organisation and Inter-Branch Organisation. We employ a simple bargaining model aimed to identify the determinants of the bargaining power in the food supply chain; the model is used to assess the capability of POs to strengthen farmers’ bargaining power. The results show that, under certain conditions, the joint selling and production planning can be effective tools for rebalancing power in the agro-food system. We also concluded that requiring a minimum size for POs may improve their effectiveness. Such requirement should be calibrated on the structure of the downstream (upstream) relevant market: more consolidated buyer (seller) industries call for larger POs
Key Success Factors in the Brazilian Coffee Agrichain: Present and Future Challenges
Get PDFCoffee production has grown 100% in volume over the past 30 years, accounting for 144 million coffee bags produced in 2015. Brazil responded to 42% of this production, along with Vietnam (19%), Colombia (9%), Indonesia (8%), and Ethiopia (4%) (OIC, 2016). Following this pace, the consumption expanded not only in such traditional markets as the United States (4.2 kg/year), Germany (6.9 kg/year), and France (5.7 kg/year) but also in tea-driven markets, such as Japan, Korea, Russia, and China (CECAFE, 2013). In 2015, Brazil harvested 43.2 million 60-kg bags of green coffee, 32 million of which were of Arabica coffee and 11.2 million of a Conilon species (CONAB, 2016). The planted area in Brazil is 2.3 million hectares, and there are about 287,000 producers, predominantly mini- and small farmers. Having continental dimensions, the country presents a variety of climates, reliefs, altitudes, and latitudes that allow the production of a wide range of types and qualities of coffee (MAPA, 2016). This research aimed to clarify present and future challenges for the Brazilian coffee agrichain, considering the growing demand and also competitiveness between the coffee countries’ producers. To capture the vivid perception of the actors in the coffee chain, a qualitative approach was employed. The research was conducted in three phases. In the first phase, 10 coffee specialists were interviewed to identify the coffee sector’s main milestones for Brazil over the next 30 years. The findings culminated in eight key success factors for coffee-farming management. Finally, in the second phase, the results of phase two were submitted for analysis by 39 coffee farmers through three discussion panels held in the major producing regions: Sul de Minas (corresponding to 25% of the national production), Cerrado Mineiro (with 10%), and Matas de Minas (with 16%) (MAPA, 2016). The third phase comprised the data analysis, aggregating the patterns by regions and by critical factors. The first outcome was a comparative analysis of the three regions using the lens of the key success factors and, second, the main future challenges faced by each region. The study consolidated new drivers of change that directly impact corporate strategies and public policies, namely: (a) increasing complexity in coffee farming, (b) farm succession, (c) mechanization, (d) increased use of pesticides, (e) climate change, (f) consumer behavior, and (g) risk management in the coffee agrichain. Given these drivers of change, companies in the Brazilian coffee agrichain may move forward with relevant strategic focus on important issues, leading to: (i) loyalty from the farmer to guarantee high-quality coffee supply, (ii) increase in entry barriers to ensure the maintenance of leadership in world coffee production and exportation, (iii) operational risk minimization for companies as well as coffee farmers, (iv) encourage and participate in the farmers´ actions to make coffee activity more environmentally friendly, and finally, (v) designing marketing plans connected with the coffee consumers’ habits and desires, current and future
The Collective Action as Potential Driver of Bottom-up Reconfiguration from Captive to Relational Value Chain. The Case Study of the Northern District in Sierra Leone
Get PDFIn recent decades, the increasing growth rate of the African cashew business has involved a large number of corporate actors such as global retailers, processors and exporters in cashew supply networks. The increasing role of agro-food supply chains enables African countries to enhance their position in global markets and to sustain local development and growth, by encouraging a higher market-orientation in the governance of global value chains. In this paper, an exploratory analysis based on a questionnaire involving 319 smallholder farmers in the North of Sierra Leone is conducted in order to explore the role of collective action in driving the potential bottom-up reconfiguration of cashew value chain. A change from captive to relational governance is expected to positively support the local industry upgrading, to reduce transaction costs and information asymmetries, and to increase the local development and growth by enhancing employment creation and poverty alleviation
Policy Incentives and the Organic Value Chain in Ireland
Get PDFMerged administration data are utilized to study farms that have converted to organic beef production in Ireland, to draw lessons for future CAP scheme design. Results show the complex structure of organic farms with lower cattle age progression than in non-organic systems, suggesting leakage to conventional agriculture. There is also a flow of animals as they age from poorer land in the West to better Eastern areas that are more suitable for finishing, however the flow is less for organic farms. Additionally, there is less specialisation on organic farms as more animals are finished, so leakage is less than expected
Implementing Sustainable Business Models in the Hospitality Sector with the Help of a Mission Statement
Get PDFThe article gives insights into the implementation process of sustainable management strategies in the food service sector. Furthermore, the normative requirements for sustainability in form of a mission statement, called “sustainable food services” are presented. The authors perceive this mission statement as a means to transfer current political demands (as in the SDG of the UN) into the sector. It could serve as a model for the entire food service sector to support and facilitate implementing aspects of sustainability into business practices with the help of sustainable management tools