Ross McLaren, Retired President and CEO, Shaw's Supermarket, Inc. - The Changing Consumer: Demanding but Predictable

The food retail business has undergone radical changes in the 21st century because of changing consumer demand in the market. The changes in consumption patterns are largely influenced by higher income and the expenditure on food as a percentage of disposable income, demographic changes, urbanization, improved transportation, trade relations, and consumers' concerns with regards to product quality and food safety. There have been observed differences in the way consumers in developed and developing countries react to income changes. For developing countries, higher income levels foster an increase in the demand for meat products which is why livestock sales have generally improved in developing countries. In more mature markets, consumers are allocating income to high value processed foodstuffs, a wider range of products to choose from, indulgence and better product quality. The demand for organic food products has increased, associated with consumers' beliefs that consuming organic products is the only way they can protect themselves from consuming toxic substances contained in pesticides and veterinary drugs. In addition, consumers require product labeling and product traceability on produce, as quality assurance instruments, to further protect themselves from food safety risks. Affluence in developed countries is giving consumers' the confidence to demand anything from the market as long as they will be paying for their demands. It is therefore important for food retailers to be able to anticipate and respond to the changes in consumer demands.Changing consumer, demanding, predictable, Consumer/Household Economics,

Deregulation of the Maize Marketing System of Swaziland and Implications for Food Security

Recent shortfalls in the supply of maize in the Kingdom of Swaziland have exacerbated the country's growing food insecurity and led to fresh calls for full deregulation of the maize marketing system. The proponents of deregulation believe that it eliminates inefficient production and service units by transferring resources to their best alternative uses. While the theoretical foundations for that position are not questionable, no studies have to date explicitly investigated the effects of the current arrangements and the potential effects of full deregulation. This paper reports on a study that examined the welfare effects of the regulation of the country's maize industry and considered the likely impacts of full deregulation of the industry. Using a partial equilibrium model, the study established that the current market arrangements for the maize industry are distortionary and make the maize marketing system of Swaziland highly uncompetitive. The results show that high efficiency losses result from the misallocation of productive resources and that these have been rising over the years. Consumption deadweight losses were also shown to be equally serious and put at risk the attainment of food security for the generality of the Swazi population. The paper sees deregulation as an important practical step to improve the competitiveness of the maize industry and enhance food security through creating the basis for more effective management of the internal maize distribution channel in Swaziland.Crop Production/Industries, Food Security and Poverty, D6, F13, I3, L5, Q18,

Ross McLaren, Retired President and CEO, Shaw's Supermarket, Inc. - The Changing Consumer: Demanding but Predictable

The food retail business has undergone radical changes in the 21st century because of changing consumer demand in the market. The changes in consumption patterns are largely influenced by higher income and the expenditure on food as a percentage of disposable income, demographic changes, urbanization, improved transportation, trade relations, and consumers' concerns with regards to product quality and food safety. There have been observed differences in the way consumers in developed and developing countries react to income changes. For developing countries, higher income levels foster an increase in the demand for meat products which is why livestock sales have generally improved in developing countries. In more mature markets, consumers are allocating income to high value processed foodstuffs, a wider range of products to choose from, indulgence and better product quality. The demand for organic food products has increased, associated with consumers' beliefs that consuming organic products is the only way they can protect themselves from consuming toxic substances contained in pesticides and veterinary drugs. In addition, consumers require product labeling and product traceability on produce, as quality assurance instruments, to further protect themselves from food safety risks. Affluence in developed countries is giving consumers' the confidence to demand anything from the market as long as they will be paying for their demands. It is therefore important for food retailers to be able to anticipate and respond to the changes in consumer demands

Deregulation of the Maize Marketing System of Swaziland and Implications for Food Security

Recent shortfalls in the supply of maize in the Kingdom of Swaziland have exacerbated the country's growing food insecurity and led to fresh calls for full deregulation of the maize marketing system. The proponents of deregulation believe that it eliminates inefficient production and service units by transferring resources to their best alternative uses. While the theoretical foundations for that position are not questionable, no studies have to date explicitly investigated the effects of the current arrangements and the potential effects of full deregulation. This paper reports on a study that examined the welfare effects of the regulation of the country's maize industry and considered the likely impacts of full deregulation of the industry. Using a partial equilibrium model, the study established that the current market arrangements for the maize industry are distortionary and make the maize marketing system of Swaziland highly uncompetitive. The results show that high efficiency losses result from the misallocation of productive resources and that these have been rising over the years. Consumption deadweight losses were also shown to be equally serious and put at risk the attainment of food security for the generality of the Swazi population. The paper sees deregulation as an important practical step to improve the competitiveness of the maize industry and enhance food security through creating the basis for more effective management of the internal maize distribution channel in Swaziland