Supermarkets And Agri-Food Supply Chains: Transformations in the Production and Consumption of Foods

Edited by David Burch and Geoffrey Lawrence. July 2007. Edward Elgar Publishing

Over the last twenty years there has been a gradual shift in the distribution of power in agri-food supply chains, away from the manufacturers of branded food products to the global supermarket chains such as Wal-Mart and Tesco. This transformation has had a profound effect on the food we eat, together with the ways food is produced, processed and marketed. This book analyses the causes and consequences of this transformation, and evaluates the impacts along the whole supply chain. It considers some of the theoretical and cultural approaches to the analysis of change in the organization and management of the agri-food supply chain, and presents a series of studies focusing upon the effects of changes in Europe, North America and the less developed countries, the impacts on farmers and workers, and implications for the environment. The contested nature of these changes opens up the possibility of a number of likely future scenarios for the global agri-food system, which are also analysed and evaluated. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contents: Introduction Part I: The Construction and Maintenance of Agri-Food Supply Chains Part II: Regulation and Standards in Agri-Food Supply Chains Part III: Comparative Studies in Agri-Food Supply Chains Conclusion Index Contributors include: C. Bain, D. Barling, D. Burch, L. Busch, H. Campbell, A. Cox, D. Chicksand, J. Dixon, H. Friedmann, M. Harvey, A. Hughes, J. Konefal, T. Lang, G. Lawrence, R. Le Heron, K. Lyons, M. Mascarenhas, P. McMichael, J. Neilson, B. Pritchard, B. Vorley 

To order, visit http://www.e-elgar-environment.com/Bookentry_main.lasso?id=4103 [1]