What causes organisations to fail? A review of literature to inform future food sector (management) research

Background: Organizational failure in food markets is a potential threat to food security. Thus, a greater understanding of the factors that influence organizational failure and reduce supply chain resilience is essential to underpin agile and dynamic food supply chains. Scope and Approach: The aim of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of system level factors that influence organizational failure in food supply chains in order to conceptualize the horizontal and vertical interaction of such factors at the three levels described: the micro system, the meso system and the macro system level. A systematic review, based on a specific search strategy, incorporated articles from the fields of management, business and economics research. Whilst 616 articles were initially identified, only 41 of these were within the established inclusion criteria and reviewed. A model of organizational failure, determined here as “The House of Cards Model”, is developed, that can then be empirically tested in further research. Key findings and conclusions: A hierarchy was developed to contextualize the factors deemed to be of influence. The macro (external environment) level includes criteria such as economic conditions, formal institutions, government policies, competitors and rumors. The factors addressed in the meso (organizational) level include organization age and size, location, property structure, client, supplier and shareholder relationships, financial resources, physical resources, human resources and succession process. At the micro (individual) level the managers’ skill, characteristics, actions and mindset are of influence. This paper contributes to advancing the debate and underpins further empirical research on organizational failure in food supply chains

Drivers and inhibitors in the acceptance of meat alternatives: The case of plant and insect-based proteins

Insects as an alternative protein source has gained traction for its advantageous environmental impact. Despite being part of many traditional food cultures, insects remain a novelty in Western cultures and a challenging concept for many. Even though plant-based protein alternatives are not facing the same barriers, product unfamiliarity and limited exposure hinder adoption, which could be detrimental to growth within the food sector. This study is aimed at evaluating plant- and insect-based proteins as alternative dietary proteins. A model indicating the drivers of consumer attitudes towards meat-alternative proteins and consumer willingness to try, buy, and pay a premium was tested. Further, 3091 responses were collected using surveys in nine countries: China, USA, France, UK, New Zealand, Netherlands, Brazil, Spain, and the Dominican Republic. Structural Equation Modelling was used to analyze the data. We found that consumer’s behavioral intentions towards both plant-based and insect-based alternatives are inhibited by food neophobia but to an extent, are amplified by the perceived suitability and benefits of the protein, which in turn are driven by nutritional importance, environmental impact, healthiness, and sensory attributes for both alternatives. The expectation of the nutritional value of meat is the strongest (negative) influence on perceived suitability/benefits of plant-based protein and willingness to try, buy, and pay more for plant-based proteins, but it only has a relatively small impact on the suitability/benefits of insect-based protein and no impact on willingness to try, buy, and pay more for insect-based proteins. Overall, we conclude that consumer adoption towards meat alternatives is complex and is strengthened by the perceived suitability/benefits of the protein and general importance of perceived food healthiness and sustainability. Conversely, adoption is hindered by dietary factors and the experiential importance of meat and food neophobia

Price determinants of beef bulls sold in livestock auctions

The main objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of phenotypic, genotypic, and auction characteristics that may influence the selling prices of bulls. Data from 1,540 Braford and 1,179 Brangus bulls sold at auctions in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, were collected and evaluated individually. Body condition score (BCS), muscularity, frame, foreskin size, presence or absence of horns, and data regarding the auction such as name/venue, event edition, forms of payment, among others, were considered. Information such as weight at the time of sale, scrotal circumference (SC), expected profit differences, selection indexes, and date of birth were collected from the catalogs supplied at the auctions. To obtain the influence of the selected explanatory variables throughout the conditional distribution of bull prices, a quantile regression was used, and the quantiles were established as follows: 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, and 90th. The buyers of Braford and Brangus bulls valued characteristics such as age, weight, and SC in relation to frame, muscularity, BCS, and foreskin size. In addition, the price behavior at different auctions was positively related to the operation time of the auction in this market and with the reputation of the seller. Regarding genetic variables of Brangus bulls, these had little or no influence on the selling price. There was a positive influence on the weaning index in the 90th quantile and on the final index in the 50th and 75th quantiles. Buyers of synthetic bull breeds at auctions value the phenotypic characteristics of bulls more than they do genetic characteristics, which may not reflect permanent gains in the cattle herd