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

Current Agriculture, Food & Resource Issues

Figure 12 Percent change in number of establishments in major Canadian agriculture
and food industries, 1991-1999

Source: Strategis Canada

Implications of Globalization and Concentration

Implications for Business Managers

Global Opportunities and Competition

As the rate and extent of globalization increases and mergers and acquisitions change
the nature of the competition, managers must plot their courses in an increasingly
complex environment. The principal message for agri-food managers is that constant
environmental scanning will be essential to identify both the opportunities and threats
resulting from globalization and concentration. Foreign markets present new market and
sourcing options as well as opportunities for acquiring new products to offer to a firm’s
existing customer base. By the same token, competition may come from competitors who
were previously not involved in the markets, due either to geographic separation or to the
fact that their business was not traditionally focused on agri-food markets. As agri-food
markets become a place for new competitors to deploy their non-agri-food competencies,
they can change the nature of competition in the agri-food sector. For agri-food managers,
developing core competencies by looking inward at firm capabilities is important, but
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