Why is the united States of
America the richest nation in history? Human economic activity is
tied to food. The easier it is to obtain food, the more productive
a country becomes. However, today, a question lingers. It is about
the impact of PGST (permanent global summer time), the fact that you
can purchase virtually any kind of produce 12 months out of the year.
Walk down the aisle of your produce department and you will see that
convenience and cloning sells. Supermarkets are redefining the shape
of the produce industry.
Now that shoppers have adjusted their “purchasing clocks”
to PGST, is there a chance of going back to “greengrocer”
and “mom and pop” corner stores? Probably not. Today’s
customers are saying “Serve, delight and amaze me or I’ll
go somewhere else.” Customer service is a conduit for delivering
perceived value. To take advantage of this, it is time to move beyond
customer service and satisfaction to value. It is crucial to market
to customer perceptions of value.
More Imported Food
U.S. food consumption continues to climb. Per capita food
intake increased by an average of 10 lbs. per year over the past 20
years. In 1983, the average American consumed 1,800 lbs of food, 160
lbs. of that imported. Contrast that with 2002, when the average American
consumed 2000 lbs. of food, 263 lbs. imported. While the U.S is eating
more food, the percentage of that that is imported is increasing.
Imported horticulture products drive the food import surge. Between
1994 and 2003, imported horticultural products more than doubled,
so far overshadowing imported livestock, grains, oilseed, sugar and
other crops. Onions are an horticultural exception. Onion imports
have remained fairly steady over the past decade, coming in from Mexico,
Canada, Peru, Chile and other countries. The U.S. exports most of
its onions to Canada, Japan, Mexico and Tawain. The percentage of
imported onions for consumption verses exported share of onions are
nearly the same. The U.S. exports almost as many onions as it imports.
Challenges of a Mature Market
Today, U.S. onion growers are dealing with a mature market that is
very sensitive to volume increases and decreases. Onions are a global
commodity; trade is effected directly by currency exchange rates,
supply gluts and shortages. There are fine lines between supply and
demand equity, market share surrender and financial profits or losses.
It is time to broaden our definition of innovation and begin a whole
new type of brainstorming. Get doubly serious about process innovation.
Benchmark your competition and unleash the creativity of your people.
Companies willing to change are transforming their futures. Jack Welch,
the celebrated former CEO of General Electric, was fond of saying,
“If the rate of change inside your company is less that the
rate of change outside of it, then the end is in sight.” Be
willing to change.
