Multinational Agribusinesses »

Stay a step ahead of the global competition in food and fiber production,
processing, and sales!

Multinational Agribusinesses is an essential guide to the inner workings of
companies with direct investments in the food and fiber system in the
United States and the world. The book provides in-depth and up-to-date
analysis of the crucial issues facing multinational enterprises involved in
input and output supply activities, commodity investment, food
manufacturing, and food distribution. An international panel of academics
and researchers working in economics and agriculture presents strategic
management and economic analysis of agribusinesses representing a variety
of sizes and nationalities.

Multinational Agribusinesses examines the key areas of concern to
multinationals involved with food and drink processing and/or upstream
industries, including recent trends, growth factors, innovations, product
and geographic diversification, and intra-firm trade. The book presents
updated statistics (total sales, agrifood sales, net income, employment
figures, number of total businesses on overseas and home markets) on the
world s 100 largest food multinationals, and updated tables on sell-offs,
divestitures, and plant closures. Multinational Agribusinesses looks at
enterprises in the United States, Europe, Australia and New Zealand,
Southeast Asia, and Brazil, including Ajinomoto, Coca-Cola, Nestlé,
Ralston Purina, Unilever, Barilla, and the Charoen Pokphan Group.

Multinational Agribusinesses provides managers with answers to the
questions they consider every day, including:

Why do some multinational agribusinesses grow faster than others?

Is product or geographic diversification conducive to good performance?

Are Japanese food multinationals a challenge to my business?

What industrial and geographical strategies are my competitors using?

Government officials in countries hosting multinationals can find answers
to their questions, including:

Is my food multinational taking its research and development facilities
abroad?

Will foreign direct investment outflows reduce my country s export of food?

Are multinational agribusinesses from new source countries viable?

And Multinational Agribusinesses will supply academics with responses to
theoretical inquiries, such as:

Is the standard theory of the multinational enterprises applicable to food
multinationals?

What are the specificities of food multinationals compared to other
multinationals?

Multinational Agribusinesses is a unique resource for international
business managers, officials from government or international
organizations, and academics working in international business studies and
agricultural economics.

About the Editor
Contributors
Acknowledgments
Introduction

Chapter 1. The Rise of Global Enterprises in the World s Food Chain
Introduction
A Dichotomous Globalization Process
Sectoral Globalization: Refocusing on Core Business Activities
The Changing Structure of the World s Food Oligopoly
Concluding Remarks
Appendix

Chapter 2. The Performance of Multinational Agribusinesses: Effects of
Product and Geographical Diversification
Introduction
Theoretical Background
Diversification, Size, and Rate of Growth
Economic Specifications
Concluding Remarks
Appendix

Chapter 3. Innovation in Multinational Agribusinesses
Introduction
Patented Innovation in Food and Beverage Multinationals
The Globalization of Innovative Activities
Innovators and Their Strategies
Concluding Remarks
Appendix

Chapter 4. Foreign Direct Investment in U.S. Food and Kindred Products
Introduction
Recent Trends in FDI
What Is Foreign Direct Investment, and Why Do It?
Determinants of FDI
Future Research

Chapter 5. Multinational Food Corporations and Trade: The Impact of Foreign
Direct Investment in the U.S. Food Industry on Food and Agricultural
Exports
Introduction
Previous Literature
An Empirical Model of the Impact of FDI on International Trade
Regression Results
Implications and Conclusions

Chapter 6. External versus Internal Markets of the Multinational
Enterprise: Intrafirm Trade in French Multinational Agribusiness
The Foundations of Intrafirm Trade
Intrafirm Trade in the French Agrofood Foreign Trade
The Determinants of Intrafirm Trade in the French Agrofood Industry: Model
and Results
Conclusion
Appendix

Chapter 7. The Internationalization Paths of Australian and New Zealand
Food MNEs
Introduction
Existing Research on Firm Internationalization
The History and Political Economy of Antipodean Food Sectors
Australia/New Zealand As a Base for Global Branded Food Companies: The
Fosters Group
Using Australia/New Zealand As a Regional Base: Coca-Cola Amatil
Levering Competitive Advantage: The Fonterra Story
Conclusion

Chapter 8. Regionalization, Globalization, and Multinational Agribusiness:
A Comparative Perspective from Southeast Asia
Introduction
Approaches to the Study of TWMNEs
Agrofood Multinational Companies in Asia: Unwieldy Giants or Nimble
Opportunists?
The Charoen Pokphand Group
The Salim Group
Southeast Asian Agrofood Multinationals: A Comparative Analysis
Conclusions

Chapter 9. Multinational Firms in the Brazilian Food Industry
Introduction
General Overview of Foreign Direct Investments in Brazil and Latin America
M&A: Main Strategy of Entry into the Brazilian Market
The Brazilian Food Market As the Main Attraction for FDI
Impacts on the Food Industry in Brazil
Conclusions
Appendix
Index
Reference Notes Included