New Directions in Global Food Markets

Economic Research Service/USDA. Anita Regmi and Mark Gehlhar, editors. February 2005

Abstract. Although consumer diets are being upgraded globally, food purchase patterns vary across countries based on income levels. Developing countries are registering rapid increases in retail sales of high-value foods, while developed countries are seeing a rise in sales of products that meet consumer demands for variety, food safety, and quality. To meet these increasingly varied needs, multinational food retailers and manufacturers are expanding their presence in developing countries, and food retailers and suppliers are adding value and differentiating their products in developed countries. The ongoing changes are driving food supply chains to adopt closer coordination between producers and retailers to facilitate customizing products to meet consumer demands.Even as the food industry is becoming more global, food markets are increasingly responding to consumer preferences at a local level and catering to specific demands in each market.

Collection of papers:

Chapter 1  Factors Shaping Global Food Markets Mark Gehlhar and Anita Regmi

Chapter 2 Demand for Quality Drives Changes in Food Supply Chains. Robert P. King and Luciano Venturini

Chapter 3 Retail Sector Responses to Changing Consumer Preferences: The European Experience. Jean-Marie Codron, Klaus Grunert, Eric Giraud-Heraud, Louis-Georges Soler, and Anita Regmi

Chapter 4 Supermarket Expansion in Latin America and Asia: Implications for Food Marketing Systems Thomas Reardon, C. Peter Timmer, and Julio A. Berdegue

Chapter 5  Global Food Manufacturing Reorients To Meet New Demands. Chris Bolling and Mark Gehlhar

Available for download at www.ers.usda.gov/publications/aib794/aib794.pdf