The fight for stomach share
and agribusiness
1
Few topics could have been so comprehensive in scope as this year's global
F&A global conference. 'The fight for stomach share' brought together top
players from the whole food and agri-chain, from primary production
through production to manufacturing, food services and retail. During the
m two-day event, held in Paris in early September, a number of major concerns
emerged, among them the issues of food security and safety and risk
management. But these issues could only rise to top priority because the
whole industry has come to recognize a single driver - the consumer.
What's NewS was there to bring a full report.
Consumer confidence
Safety and service
Best-known brand
Tob»»"*»'
0-10.09.99
mach sharc
the fiahl lor
Every industry relies on the recognition
of trends and shifts in customer he-
haviours as basis for forward planning.
Who, where, how, what - all are crucial in
determining future strategies. The impor
tante of these factors was echoed in the
four themes in the conference - world
food consumption; globalizaton strategy;
marketing strategy; and supply chain
strategy. Henk Gentis opened the proceed-
ings, introducing chairman Sir Michael
Franklin, a high-level British civil servant
who had served in various top positions in
Brussels. The keynote presentation carne
from Henk Visser. Positioning the whole
food supply and retail industry all along
the chain, he argued that confidence, both
consumer and among investors, must not
only be won, but also retained over the
long term if the industry is to expand and
grow. That growth is not only essential
for profitability, but primarily to build an
industry which can feed an explosive
world population.
lt was almost is if Visser's presentation
forrned the broad canvas on which the
speakers would fill in the detail. He
touched on every aspect of the issues
uppermost 011 the conference's agenda,
including globalization, consumer demo-
graphics, the growing importance of
contract catering, the role of brand-
- ing, consolidation both vertically
and horizontally, and the increasing
power of the retailer. Ahold's CEO, Cees
van der Hoeven, began by agreeing that
consolidation of the industry was cer-
tainly a major trend, but he was quick to
point out that food safety and quality
were top of the list for consumers. As a
food retailer operating in 17 countries on
four continents, he emphasized that the
industry itself will have major responsibil-
ity in this key area. The role of the con
sumer in the food business equation, he
added, has also undergone a massive
change. Food supply and retail has shifted
from a push to a pull industry so that now
the consumer defines and dictates, rather
than having products pushed down their
throat by hard advertising campaigns.
He raised some eyebrows when he moved
on to formatting retail outlets. His sugges-
tions that multiple formats were no longer
'suicide for the retailer' due to new tech
nologies and flexible infrastructure were
met with general consensus. However, his
predicted demise of the discounter con
cept, at least in Europe, caused some
consternation. In the ensuing discussion,
questions were posed on Van der
Hoeven's perception of discounters as well
as his forecast that two or three giant
global retailers would emerge. He re-
sponded that Ahold had defined a number
of trends, some upward, others down-
ward. Price as marketing tooi was on a
downward slope. It had been overtaken
by other factors, including safety, the envi
ronment, convenience and service.
Next up was Robbin Hedges of
McDonald's Southern Europe. Like Van
der Hoeven, he stressed tailoring the
product to consumer preferences and de-
sires. If this appears a contradiction in
terms from the company which arguably
is the world's best-known brand, then
Hedges was quick to explain that adapt-
ability is part of that global success for-
Taking a break - coffee and networking
mula. His point was that McDonald's her
itage ntay be uniquely American, but the
restaurants around the world are run by
local entrepreneurs who understand their
