Putting Globalization and Concentration in the Agri-food Sector into Context

From the protests in the streets of Genoa, Quebec and Seattle to the U.S. Senate, one doesn’t have to look far to find opposition to globalization and concentration.“… [D]o something about antitrust, the concentration that is clogging the free market …â€1was one plea in the Senate debate of the Wellstone Amendment 2752. The proposal to place a moratorium on large agribusiness mergers and to establish a commission to review agricultural mergers, concentration, and market power was defeated 71 to 21 but provides an indicator of the concern felt in some quarters. Similar legislative proposals have been made in the European Union and again in the United States. Globalization and concentration have changed the agri-food sector. To experience global competitors, a firm does not have to enter new markets; the competitors will come to the firm. Adapting to the changing global landscape requires managers and policymakers to view the world differently, understand the factors behind the changes and plan how best to alter corporate strategy or government policy to meet the new challenges.Agricultural and Food Policy, International Relations/Trade,

CANADA-U.S. TRADE NEGOTIATIONS: A VIEW FROM CANADIAN AGRICULTURE

International Relations/Trade,

Creating Vertical Strategic Alliances: Theory and Cases from Canada\u27s Agri-Food Sector

Participants in Canada\u27s agri0food sector have been averse to vertical collaboration for too long. The sector\u27s history of producer marketing boards that were concerned with obtaining bargaining power to redress the market power of buyers has created attitudes the market power of buyers has created attitudes towards buyers and sellers that increase the risk that agri-food organizations will underestimate the advantages of vertical strategic alliances and overestimate the difficulty of building such relationships. However, in spite of the prevailing attitude among participants in Canada\u27s agri-food sector, many organizations have nurtured vertical alliances. This paper develops a framework for understanding how vertical strategic alliances can be created and illustrates it using case studies of organizations in Canada\u27s agri-food sector that have created successful vertical strategic alliances (VSAs). Brief descriptions of the organizations involved in the case studies and the key characteristics of their VSAs are provided in Table 1

INNOVATION IN THE CANADIAN AGRI-FOOD SECTOR

This document contains the PowerPoint presentation given by the authors at the 2002 WCC-72 meetings, regarding innovation in the Canadian Agri-Food sector. Definitions relating to the dimensions and process of innovation as well as a case study are presented

Putting Globalization and Concentration in the Agri-food Sector into Context

From the protests in the streets of Genoa, Quebec and Seattle to the U.S. Senate, one doesn’t have to look far to find opposition to globalization and concentration.“… [D]o something about antitrust, the concentration that is clogging the free market …”1was one plea in the Senate debate of the Wellstone Amendment 2752. The proposal to place a moratorium on large agribusiness mergers and to establish a commission to review agricultural mergers, concentration, and market power was defeated 71 to 21 but provides an indicator of the concern felt in some quarters. Similar legislative proposals have been made in the European Union and again in the United States. Globalization and concentration have changed the agri-food sector. To experience global competitors, a firm does not have to enter new markets; the competitors will come to the firm. Adapting to the changing global landscape requires managers and policymakers to view the world differently, understand the factors behind the changes and plan how best to alter corporate strategy or government policy to meet the new challenges

The Role of Economic Analysis in Countervailing Duty Disputes: Cases Involving Agriculture

Several recent countervailing duty cases involving agricultural products have resulted in lively debate, and in some cases, additional political or legal action. This article examines whether several recent decisions involving agricultural products made under Canadian and U.S. countervailing duty law were consistent with economic theory, the GATT Subsidies Code and the relevant national lwa. On the basis of the analysis the article concludes that national trade laws, both in the U.S. and Canada, could be improved by explicitly incorporating an economic definition of a trade distorting domestic production subsidy, and an economic test for the causal link between a foreign subsidy and injury to a domestic industry.

The Ontario Christian Gleaners: A Case Study of a Stakeholder-Engaged Organizational Strategy

The Ontario Christian Gleaners (OCG) gathers, dries, and distributes produce destined to be waste and creates value by processing dried soup mixes and fruit snacks using volunteer labour. This case study examines the roles of relationships in the OCGs strategy, operations, and management using a strategic management framework that incorporates value creation and trading. Data was collected from secondary sources, site visits, and interviews. The case examines how relationships with primary and secondary stakeholders are managed to create value.  Primary stakeholders are individuals, groups, and organizations with formal, regular, contractual or transactional relationships with an organization. At OCG they include donors of vegetables and fruit, supplies like pails, and services like free waste tipping; communities that receive the dried soups, fruits, shipping barrels, and pails; mission and relief organizations that raise funding and distribute the food and the volunteers who donate their time.  Secondary stakeholders do not have regular relationships with an organization but may be affected by its actions or affect its actions indirectly through their activities in the market or society. At OCG secondary stakeholders include those who receive soup; interest groups such as food businesses, consumer or environmental organizations; the earth that supplies the agricultural and food resources; the media; the government that oversees the charitable status requirements and food safety legislation; food banks and others who have similar missions to feed the hungry; and finally educational, social, and health institutions who have goals that intersect with those of the OCG.Le groupe Ontario Christian Gleaners (OCG) a pour objectif d’aider les organismes d’aide humanitaire. L’OCG, à l’aide de bénévoles, recueille des dons périssables (fruits et légumes) afin de les transformer en collations ou en mélanges de soupes déshydratés pouvant être distribués aux collectivités défavorisées à l’échelle internationale. À l’aide d’un cadre théorique fondé sur la gestion stratégique, cette étude de cas analyse les liens entre la stratégie organisationnelle de l’OCG, ses opérations et sa gestion. Les données de l’étude parviennent de sources secondaires, de visites de sites, et d’entretiens. Les relations entre les parties prenantes primaires et secondaires sont analysées afin de mieux comprendre la création de valeur ajoutée. Les parties prenantes primaires englobent les individus, les groupes et les organismes ayant des liens officiels, réguliers, contractuels ou commerciaux avec d’autres organismes. Dans le cas de l’OCG, il s’agit des donneurs de denrées et de matériaux (par exemple, des seaux et des barils), les collectivités recevant les mélanges et les collations, les organismes humanitaires et les bénévoles. Les parties prenantes secondaires n’entretiennent pas de relations constantes et régulières avec d’autres organismes, mais peuvent néanmoins être touchées, indirectement, par les activités de l’organisme. Les parties prenantes secondaires regroupent les individus recevant les mélanges; les groupes tels que les commerces alimentaires, les consommateurs et les organismes environnementaux; le sol agricole; les médias; le gouvernement qui émet les normes relatives à la sécurité alimentaire et les lois; les banques alimentaires; et, finalement, les institutions sociales, de santé et d’éducation qui partagent les mêmes buts