THE FOOD PRODUCTION AND MARKETING SYSTEM
The highly efficient and effective food production and marketing system in the U.S.
is a result of a favorable climate and geography; abundant and specialized production
and logistics capabilities; intense use of mechanical, chemical, biological, and
information technologies; and the creative and productive individuals who lead and
manage the firms which make up the food and agribusiness industries. This U.S. food
production and marketing system produces enormous supplies of food and fiber
products. These products not only feed and clothe U.S. consumers but are also exported
to the international marketplace to fulfill needs of consumers around the world.
The food production and marketing system encompasses all the economic
activities that support farm production and the conversion of raw farm products to
consumable goods. This broad definition includes a farm machinery manufacturer, a
fertilizer mine, a baby food factory, the paper fi rm that supplies cardboard boxes, rail and
trucking fi rms, wholesalers, distributors, and retailers of food, restaurateurs, and many,
many others.
The food production and marketing system ends (or begins) with the many, varied
activities that take place in the input supply sector. This sector is responsible for
providing the thousands of different inputs— both products and services — to production
agriculture. Firms here include DuPont, Syngenta, John Deere, DeLaval, or your local
cooperative, as well as hundreds of other fi rms that manufacture and distribute the
inputs that farmers and ranchers need in their businesses. Let’s take a closer look at each
of these sectors.
At some point, it all comes down to getting raw farm commodities processed,
packaged, distributed, and sold to the consumer. A very wide variety of processing and
marketing firms are responsible for adding value or utility to commodities as they leave
the farm gate. We will start our look at the food sector with food retailers and away from
home food firms. Then, we will look at wholesaling firms, food manufacturers and
processors, and assembly and transportation fi rms. We will end this section with a focus
on the linkages across firms in the food sector, and between the food sector and the other
sectors in the food production and marketing system.
