Food and Agricultural Markets: The Quiet Revolution

U.S. food and farm markets are in the midst of a quiet revolution that is changing the system that moves the nation's food from farms to the dinner table. The revolution under way will bring profound changes to how food is produced, processed, distributed, and marketed in the United States and abroad. The manifold changes that define this revolution reflect many features of America's dynamic society--new technologies, improvements in telecommunications, more efficient means of transportation and distribution, and a fragmented retail market. Despite the importance of the food system, the revolution sweeping food and farm markets has been largely overlooked, even by the industry itself. In addition, many public policies and institutions that support the food system have not kept pace with the changes. Therefore, a clear need exists to develop approaches to government policies and programs that will adapt to the new food system for the benefit of society. Food and Agriculture Markets: The Quiet Revolution, sponsored by the National Policy Association's Food and Agriculture Committee and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service, describes the quiet revolution in food and farm markets, examines its impact on market participants, and encourages new thinking about policies and institutions appropriate to the food industry's bold future. The book's authors, who represent the public and private sectors and academia, analyze effects of change that are pervasive and critical to the future economic well-being not only of those enterprises directly engaged in marketing and processing U.S. farm products but also of producers of farm commodities and of consumers here and abroad. These changes are also important to U.S. trade and will potentially influence the American standard of living.