...shelves in grocery stores. Recently an issue escalated that broke headlines and became a huge set back within the company, ConAgra. It was claimed that Salmonella sickened almost 300 people nationwide. Salmonella is a bacteria that’s is related with your intestines and usually is associated with food poisoning. The Washington Post article, “Peanut Butter Recalled Over Salmonella” by Josh Funk, provides the reader with a detailed article about the controversy and brings outsiders in and allows the reader to have a voiced opinion. On the other hand, the article “Salmonella linked to Peter Pan, Great Value Peanut Butter” by Steve Higgins addresses the reader a little different way. He uses a more stern approach and goes straight into the issue. He does not get the outsiders opinion and really only tells you the issue within the company using his own opinion and statements. Funk’s article seems more appealing because he has an open-minded about allows the reader to see two perspective of the story, where as, Higgins article is more close-minded and only provides the reader with one view point on the article. In the opening part of Funk’s article “Peanut Butter Recalled Over Salmonella” he does a fantastic job of making the article appeal to the audience and tells the reader the severity of the issue. Funk starts off by directly telling you what to do if salmonella has effected you. He states “Lids of jars with a product code beginning with “2111” can be returned to ConAgra for a refund...
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...control major companies have in our world, I have come to this main question. How much choice do we really have when we want to purchase goods? Choice is something most people just assume they have when they are picking their cable company, choosing a bank, or even walking through your local food mart. The goal of this essay is to show that while at first glance choices may seem endless, but when you do a small amount of research you can quickly realize that most brands link back to the same parent company. The majority of foods, drinks, and health products we buy trace their way back to 10 major corporations. Society today has this false idea that they have a choice in what they buy at the grocery store. For example you may not like large soda companies and decide to not buy their products. But if you buy bottled water, sports drinks, energy drinks, or fruit juice chances are you are buying a brand from a soda producing parent company. Most retailers charge a fee to get products on the most visible shelves which keeps small companies away from your line of sight. This is because large consumer good companies have a special relationship with retailers. Like an “I’ll scratch your back if you scratch mine ideology”. Many of the products that you see on store shelves are direct competitors that are linked to the same company. “ConAgra sells six varieties of popcorn” (http://www.alternet.org/food/how-big-food-creates-illusion-choice-supermarket). Different brands of products is a ploy...
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...Question: Conduct a strategic analysis of Kraft Foods Company, with special emphasis on Value chain and National Diamond model Solution: Industry Overview Kraft Foods Inc operates in the food and beverages industry. The industry is constituted by those companies that involve in stages of activities from procuring the raw food material after harvest till the retail purchase. The activities involved are the processing of raw food materials, manufacturing, packaging the food products and distributing them. The products may be fresh, prepared foods, packaged foods, alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages. All the products that are meant for human consumption except the pharmaceutical products belong to this industry. The dairy sector forms the largest part of the food industry. The baked and cereal items and chilled foods are the close second and third. In case of the beverages industry, it is divided into alcoholic and nonalcoholic segment. A vast of the alcoholic market is made up of beer, cider and other flavored alcoholic beverages. On the other hand, soft drinks, coffee, tea, juice and water constitute the nonalcoholic beverage market. The industry is highly competitive and fragmented. Though the competition is among few notable players, no player has a dominant position to dictate the price levels. The players rely largely on advertisements to promote their brand and secure the market position (Food and Beverages Industry Profile, 2009). Market size: With over 16.5...
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...Some of its #1 and #2 market-leading brands are Better Crocker, Gold Medal, Green Giant, Pillsbury, and Yoplait. General Mills operates in more than 130 countries worldwide and divides its business into three core segments: U.S. Retail (70% of revenue through major retailers), international (18% of revenue and supported by a joint venture with Swiss food giant Nestle SA), and bakeries and foodservices (12% of revenue). Currently, it’s growing its reach from grocery stores into new channels like super centers, drug and discount stores, and convenience stores. It is also expanding quickly into growing markets such as China, Russia, and Latin America. The goal of General Mills is to be among the most socially responsible food companies in the world in addressing the interrelationship of economic, environmental and social value. In 2012, they have reported continued progress in advancing their goals specifically in the health, environment, and sourcing areas. They have improved the health profile of their products again due to the increase of healthy and organic food choices, and have decreased natural resource consumption in global supply chain operations. They’ve taken steps to source more raw materials sustainably and mitigate water risk. General Mills’ pursuit of their goal is to create value not only for their customers, consumers, employees, and stakeholders, but also for their suppliers, our communities, and our world. Industry & Competitive Landscape The food...
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...Question: Conduct a strategic analysis of Kraft Foods Company, with special emphasis on Value chain and National Diamond model Solution: Industry Overview Kraft Foods Inc operates in the food and beverages industry. The industry is constituted by those companies that involve in stages of activities from procuring the raw food material after harvest till the retail purchase. The activities involved are the processing of raw food materials, manufacturing, packaging the food products and distributing them. The products may be fresh, prepared foods, packaged foods, alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages. All the products that are meant for human consumption except the pharmaceutical products belong to this industry. The dairy sector forms the largest part of the food industry. The baked and cereal items and chilled foods are the close second and third. In case of the beverages industry, it is divided into alcoholic and nonalcoholic segment. A vast of the alcoholic market is made up of beer, cider and other flavored alcoholic beverages. On the other hand, soft drinks, coffee, tea, juice and water constitute the nonalcoholic beverage market. The industry is highly competitive and fragmented. Though the competition is among few notable players, no player has a dominant position to dictate the price levels. The players rely largely on advertisements to promote their brand and secure the market position (Food and Beverages Industry Profile, 2009). Market size: With over 16.5...
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...following demand equation for its product using data from 26 supermarkets around the country for the month of April: Q = - 5200 – 42P + 20 PX + 5.2 I + 0.2 A + 0.25 M | | (2.002) | (17.5) | (6.2) | (2.5) | (0.09) | (0.21) | | | R2 = 0.55 | N= 26 | F = 4.88 | | * Q = quantity sold by month * P= price of the product=500 * Px=price of a leading competitor ‘s product=600 * I =per capita income of the standard metropolitan statistical area where the supermarkets are located =5500 * A=monthly advertizing expenditures= 10000 * M=number of microwave ovens sold in the SMSA in which the super markets is located =5000 a-Compute the elasticity for each of the variables for each variable ∆Q/∆variable = variable coefficient so PED = variable coefficient x variable initial value/Q PEDP = -42X500/Q Q= -5200-42x500+20x600+5.2x5500+0.2x10000+0.25x5000 = = -5200-21000+12000+28600 +2000+1250=17650 PEDP = -42X500/17650 = -1.19 PEDPX = 20X600/17650 = 0.68 PEDI= 5.2X5500/17650 = 1.62 PEDA= 0.2X10000/17650 = .11 PEDM= 0.25X5000/17650 = .07 Price is the assignment of value, or the amount the consumer must exchange to receive the offering. Pricing strategy is one of the most difficult areas of marketing decision making. It deals with the methods of setting profitable and justifiable prices. A firm’s pricing strategies may be based on costs, demand, or the prices of competing products. Pricing is probably the least...
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...following demand equation for its product using data from 26 supermarkets around the country for the month of April: Q = - 5200 – 42P + 20 PX + 5.2 I + 0.2 A + 0.25 M | | (2.002) | (17.5) | (6.2) | (2.5) | (0.09) | (0.21) | | | R2 = 0.55 | N= 26 | F = 4.88 | | * Q = quantity sold by month * P= price of the product=500 * Px=price of a leading competitor ‘s product=600 * I =per capita income of the standard metropolitan statistical area where the supermarkets are located =5500 * A=monthly advertizing expenditures= 10000 * M=number of microwave ovens sold in the SMSA in which the super markets is located =5000 a-Compute the elasticity for each of the variables for each variable ∆Q/∆variable = variable coefficient so PED = variable coefficient x variable initial value/Q PEDP = -42X500/Q Q= -5200-42x500+20x600+5.2x5500+0.2x10000+0.25x5000 = = -5200-21000+12000+28600 +2000+1250=17650 PEDP = -42X500/17650 = -1.19 PEDPX = 20X600/17650 = 0.68 PEDI= 5.2X5500/17650 = 1.62 PEDA= 0.2X10000/17650 = .11 PEDM= 0.25X5000/17650 = .07 Price is the assignment of value, or the amount the consumer must exchange to receive the offering. Pricing strategy is one of the most difficult areas of marketing decision making. It deals with the methods of setting profitable and justifiable prices. A firm’s pricing strategies may be based on costs, demand, or the prices of competing products. Pricing is probably the least...
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...clubs (Sam’s); restaurants and fast food chains and natural food stores (Whole Foods, Wild Oats Generally the concentration of competitors has been fragmented by geography. However, through recent consolidations, the emergence of regional and national chains has started to prevail along with the decline of the independent/local shops. This consolidation activity has allowed many companies to spread their fixed costs over a wider range of output, thus creating more efficiency in operations. Often, it is cheaper for a company to acquire an incumbent due to the location of their stores and access to customers rather than to raise the capital for entirely new stores, which is how Whole Foods has been able to expand following their growth model strategy. Whole Foods acquisition growth plan has helped them to gain enough economies of scale to better compete with the Wal-marts and Sam’s Clubs. Threat of Substitutes Price of substitutes plays a role in determining a company’s profitability. Organic food is priced at a premium to conventional food reflecting the high labor costs in cultivating the product. The price premium may be one reason why organic food has not become mainstream. Another reason is that consumers either lack education about its benefits (or don’t care) so that the price premium does not appear to be justified. However, when comparing upscale organic and prepared foods to competitors such as restaurants, the benefit/cost ratio appears more justified. Market research...
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...managers recognize that a strategic plan is a directional map for where their companies are headed and how they intend to get there. However, it is much harder for them to understand what goes into the strategic planning process, how the strategy-making task is best performed, and the full impact of the process the planning team goes through to develop the strategic direction of their organization. Strategic planning is best done when a company looks at its past, present, and future in light of its related environment. It is the process of thinking about the company and its related environment as an integrated whole. A process during which an executive "planning team" is organized to consider three key questions on a continuous basis: 1. What is our business? 2. Where do we wish to arrive, and when? and 3. How do we get from here to there? In a personal interview, Karen Poppe, Vice-President of Human Resource Management at Wall Drug, discussed the importance of organizing a strategic planning team to guide the long-term direction of a company. The planning team at Wall Drug consists of six key management people covering finance, personnel, and marketing. Clearly the success of those planning efforts is reflected in Wall Drug's average annual growth rate of 25% over the last five years. What is our Business? The process of defining the mission of company is a time consuming, tedious task requiring patience and persistence....
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...Assignment 2: Operations and Long –Term Investment Decision Joanne T. Johnson Eco 550 March 20, 2014 Professor Jae – Kwang Hwang Operations and Long –Term Investment Decision Introduction The grocery market is filled with various options for microwavable food depending on the preferences of the consumers. Instead of the traditional use of the oven many families now use the microwave because of their busy lifestyles. The variety of healthy low calorie -microwave food has made shopping much easier for today’s busy consumer. Low calorie labels are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and require food “labels claiming low-calories must not have more than 40 calories for a given reference amount (except sugar substitutes)”. (The Calorie Control Council, 2014) Healthy low-calorie microwave foods have come a long way since the first Swanson pre-packaged TV dinner in the 1950’s. The meal tray was heated in the oven and consisted of a small portion of meat, two vegetables and dessert. The top two competing manufacturers of microwavable low-calorie foods are Lean Cuisine owned by Nestle and Healthy Choice owned by ConAgra. Both leaders in the frozen food market began in the 80’s. Healthy Choice works rigorously with the FDA to assure foods qualify under government health standards for healthy low calorie foods. Like all businesses these two businesses need a financial business plan that allows them to assess the company’s results and set targets for future...
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...Insights into the Food, Beverage, and Consumer Products Industry GMA Overview of Industry Economic Impact, Financial Performance, and Trends The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) represents the world’s leading branded food, beverage, and consumer products companies. Since 1908, GMA has been an advocate for its members on public policy issues and has championed initiatives to increase industrywide productivity and growth. GMA member companies employ more than 2.5 million workers in all 50 states and account for more than $680 billion in global annual sales. The association is led by a board of member company chief executives. For more information, visit the GMA website at www.gmabrands.com The Food Products Association (FPA) is the largest trade association serving the food and beverage industry in the United States and worldwide. FPA’s laboratory centers, scientists, and professional staff provide technical and regulatory assistance to member companies and represent the food industry on scientific and public policy issues involving food safety, food security, nutrition, consumer affairs, and international trade. For more information, visit FPA’s website at www.fpa-food.org The member firms of the PricewaterhouseCoopers network (www.pwc.com) provide industry-focused assurance, tax, and advisory services to build public trust and enhance value for its clients and their stakeholders. More than 130,000 people in 148 countries across our network work collaboratively...
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...Alternative Solutions..............…………………………………8-11 Recommendations Solutions, Implementations and Justifications 11-15 References 16 Case Analysis: Proposal for McCain’s line of frozen products in Malaysia; Identify Marketing Plan, Product Mix, Tools, Challenges and Recommendations. [pic] Executive Summary McCain Brother founded the company with simple theory “good ethic is good business”, about the relationship with our farmers, customers, environment, community and people. It is about the good company, making good and simple food. McCain Food is the world’s largest producer of frozen chips, 1st factory New Brunswick, Canada in 1957 and today as clear market leader, 45% of all frozen potatoes sold in the UK are McCain frozen potato. Long Term Business Strategy; “ESWY International Marketing Pro” is specialized in importing and distributing frozen food from Australia and US. The company mission is to be the leader in introducing imported frozen food with healthy, quality, affordable, variety and of course Halal products. This will be a good investment for the company the opportunity will be wider and not only Malaysia market but other countries that interested in selling Halal products; Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and Philippines. Challenges Faced; A campaign awareness of Halal products food through media electronics and tabloids will make the consumers more concerned about the ingredients and served according to Islamic requirement especially for...
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...sold from the back of a dilapidated truck or delivered immediately to stores and restaurants (shelf life was nil) to modern day 20th century industrialized, mass-producing, computerized “potato chip manufacturing” is difficult (your guess is as good as mine). However, one thing for certain is…as the Frito Lay commercial says…”betcha just can’t eat one”. Product Profile: Let’s examine this product (potato chips). Today’s product is made from farm-fresh potatoes delivered daily to manufacturing plants. The sources vary from season to season. Keeping this in mind, during winter, potato chip manufacturers depend on their stored supplies. Stored potatoes are kept at a constant temperature between 40-45 degrees Farenheit and moved to a reconditioning room that is heated to 70-75 degrees Farenheit several weeks before they are to be used. Size and type are important in potato selection. Potatoes smaller than a baseball but larger than a golf ball are best. It takes approximately 100 lbs of raw potatoes to produce 25 of chips. Company Profile In 1932, two young entrepreneurs independently started two separate small companies that would transform into the...
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...I Company Background: Unilever is the parent company of the Skippy brand peanut butter. Unilever is a multi-national company with over 174,000 employees and operates in over 100 countries. Unilever has an annual advertising budget of over $77 million dollars, however it does not break down the budget per business segment. Total sales for Unilever is over $59 billion USD during fiscal year 2008. (Reed Elsevier Inc) II. Brief Introduction: Skippy was founded in 1933, 10 years after the product was initially developed by Joseph Rosefield. Skippy's Peanut Butter is manufactured in a single 158,000 sq ft plant in Little Rock, Arkansas. They produce over 10 million cases of Skippy per year and have a total of 72 different SKU's produced for global consumption. They use over 1.2 billion peanuts a day and each 18 oz jar contains 853 full peanuts. (Food & Drug Packaging, 2004) Sales data for Unilever saw overall growth in this business segment in 2008 of 7.9%. Peanut butter sale is included in the Savory, dressings and spreads product area by Unilever and accounted for sales of over $14 billion Euros. (Annual Report and Account 2008, 2008) Skippy is a marketing based organization. The products they develop and market are geared towards meeting customer needs and attempting to differentiate themselves from their competition. Examples of this would include reformulating the Skippy Peanut Butter to have a more "peanutty" taste (Skippy Peanut Butter, 2009) and also developing...
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...GermanyConclave to Elect Pope Starts on TuesdaySkype's Been Hijacked in China, and Microsoft Is O.K. With ItFor Chávez's Successor, Venezuela's Economy Looms LargeRecent Pride and Concrete: Romania's Migrant WorkersThe U.S. Jobs Engine Was Strong Heading Into SequestrationDid They All Retire?Coke, Unilever, Colgate-Palmolive Seize India's Biggest Marketing OpportunityFederal Reserve's Stress Testing Shows Politics, Not MathSections ChinaCurrent Events CalendarU.S. EconomyIndiaEnergyHousingEuropeGlobal EconomicsJobsBlog: EconochatCompanies & Industries Facebook vs. Twitter: Want Your Feed Filtered or Unfiltered?Twitter's unfiltered method can be overwhelming; Facebook's is secretive and invasive but helps with the oceans of content Companies & Industries Britain's Wonga: Payday Lender and Proud of ItAutomakers Cashing in on High-End ModelsThe Economic Benefits of Educating WomenHow Facebook's New Design Can Increase Ad RevenueRecent The Man Who's Trying to Free Sherlock HolmesSkype's Been Hijacked in China, and Microsoft Is O.K. With ItStandard Bank Takes Risky Step With Co-CEOsCoke, Unilever, Colgate-Palmolive Seize India's Biggest Marketing OpportunityEurope's Carmakers Want to Shrink. Unions Stand in the WaySections AutosSportsCompany...
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