journal article
LitStream Collection
Home
Schiefer, Jan; Hartmann, Monika
doi: 10.1002/agr.20168pmid: N/A
This article aims to explain the variation in firm performance in the German food processing industry. Building on the resource‐based view, both drivers and outcomes of firm performance were defined as relative concepts. Performance was measured as relative return on assets and sales, relative change in sales, and by combining these variables into an integrated performance measure. Data for the analysis was gathered in an online firm survey and analyzed by means of nonparametric correlation and regression analysis. The survey response was very low and the sample may not be a good representation of the population. However, the results indicate that the main drivers for firm advantages lie within technology and production‐related areas. They further suggest that with firm‐specific variables, it is possible to explain as much as two‐thirds of the variation in profitability. (Q130, L250, D240). © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Banterle, Alessandro; Stranieri, Stefanella
doi: 10.1002/agr.20169pmid: N/A
After the Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) crisis, the European Union (EU) introduced mandatory and voluntary labelling for meat products to reduce the food safety concerns of consumers and to ensure a better distribution of liability among agents of the meat supply chain. The purpose of this article is to evaluate whether voluntary traceability labelling, introduced by Regulation 1760/2000, can be considered a useful instrument for both the producers and consumers of meat products. Attention is focused on the vertical coordination effects of introducing voluntary labelling along the beef chain and on the interest the Italian consumer shows in labelled information on meat products. Two surveys were conducted: one addressing Italian meat organizations that signed voluntary labelling agreements and the other a sample of 1,025 Italian consumers. With regard to supply, the survey revealed that improved traceability led to a better redistribution of liability among the agents of the meat supply chain and to a strengthening of vertical agreements. Regarding the consumers, the results showed a notable consumer interest in the labelled information such as the meat origin and the information related to the system of cattle breeding, cattle feeding, and the date of slaughtering. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.,
House, Lisa A.; House, Mark C.; Mullady, Joy
doi: 10.1002/agr.20171pmid: N/A
Social network analysis allows researchers to capture the dynamics of social interactions, which may influence the impact of word of mouth advertising. This research seeks to combine a regression analysis of stated willingness to try a new food product with social network analysis. The goal of this article is to determine if variables that represent different aspects of group structure can better explain why some participants choose to adopt new food products while others do not. Our findings indicate that social network variables are a significant influence on a person's willingness to listen to a recommendation from someone else within their social network. Both the subject and the recommender's position in the network are influential. Additionally, the characteristics that impact willingness to listen to the recommendation vary depending on the food product studied. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Karantininis, Kostas; Graversen, Jesper T.
doi: 10.1002/agr.20162pmid: N/A
In this article, we apply a formal theoretical model of adaptation to an empirical setting within specialized pig production. The objective is to allocate decision rights ex ante so that actual decisions taken ex post will optimize the profit accruing to both parties in a contractual or integrative relation. Motivated by the situation in the market for piglets in Denmark, we focus on an analysis of a vertical partnership between a piglet producer and a finisher. By applying a model of adaptation to the particular setting, we provide a solid basis for discussions on both the importance of efficiently allocating decision rights and the usefulness of the partnership as organizational form between specialized pig producers. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Fritz, Melanie; Canavari, Maurizio
doi: 10.1002/agr.20163pmid: N/A
Vertical coordination in food networks is characterized by dynamically changing supply and marketing relationships. E‐business provides support and improvement options for vertical coordination processes in food networks. However, adoption of e‐business in food networks is low as available e‐business offers, as the communication of safeguards for trust and control as a basis for the transaction decision is not realized appropriately. This article analyzes decision preferences for trust generation as the basis for the design of e‐business environments for food networks. The analytic hierarchy process is applied to prioritize preferences for different transaction scenarios in food networks. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Shanahan, Christopher J.; Hooker, Neal H.; Sporleder, Thomas L.
doi: 10.1002/agr.20164pmid: N/A
This study explores drivers influencing food processors' decisions to adopt organic practices and the constraints which may limit the availability of food products using the National Organic Program (NOP) organic seal as a marketing tool. A constrained diffusion model is applied to assess seal qualified adoption across food categories. A second model explores market forces that influence variations in the diffusion process. Results suggest that external factors, including new regulation, impact diffusion rates. Future adoption of organic practices will require enhanced informational and physical access for potential adopters. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
doi: 10.1002/agr.20165pmid: N/A
This article argues that collaboration has been a key piston in the engine that is driving economic growth in the new millennium. Innovation in information technology, institutions, and strategic reorientation of technological change has opened opportunity, and competition has put strong imperatives in play for collaborative innovation. First, these imperatives have forced a reorientation of private enterprise from push to pull systems. Second, they have catalyzed a strategic unbundling of integrated firms to create specialized enterprises with enhanced productivity and flexibility, though with increased demand for virtual integration through less formal relationships to establish and manage collaboration. This article presents the hypothesis that these changes induced a fundamentally new dynamic in innovation processes that we label as collaborative pull innovation. This new form of innovation encompasses and directs product, process, and organizational innovation toward fulfilling consumer demand. To examine this hypothesis, the nature of private‐sector innovation is assessed within the context of the food sector. This sector is of special interest due to important roles played by small‐ to medium‐sized enterprises. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Luigi, Cembalo; Gianni, Cicia; Teresa, Del Giudice; Riccardo, Scarpa; Carolina, Tagliafierro
doi: 10.1002/agr.20161pmid: N/A
Together with the benefit due to the worldwide increase in consumer interest in traditional European food style, a growing phenomenon of agropiracy has taken place. Firms' marketing strategies tend to concentrate on product purity while we believe there exists a well‐defined path worth: 1. introduction of a traditional (original) product on international markets; 2. local firms' imitation of the successful good; 3. local firms redesigning original products according to local consumption models and preferences. A representative sample of American consumers were interviewed in 12 US cities. Econometric analysis results suggest that a strategy aimed at emphasizing the authenticity of the origin of any product may not lead to any improvement in its market share, but it might very likely affect that market as a whole. Products should be offered as part of a sort of traditional product package to promote food habits rather than just commodities. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Showing 1 to 10 of 10 Articles