Food Marketing
Oxford Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink, ed. Andrew F. Smith, New York: Oxford University Press, 501-503, 2008
9 Pages Posted: 20 Mar 2016
Date Written: June 21, 2003
Abstract
Food marketing brings together the producer and consumer. It is responsible for the chain of activities that brings food from the “farm gate to the plate.” While farmer markets are one way that this can occur, more highly processed foods, such as a breakfast cereals or frozen dinners go through a more sophisticated system. Figure 1 illustrates such a system where a farmer grows wheat, and sells it to a miller, who processes and sells it to a cereal company. This cereal company adds various ingredients, bakes, packages, and ships it to warehouses that distribute it to grocery stores and to food services. The food marketing of even a single food product can be a complicated process involving many different producers and companies. For example, 56 different companies are involved in making one can of chicken noodle soup. These not only include chicken and vegetable processors, but also the companies that transport the ingredients, and those, which print labels, and manufacture cans. In total, the food marketing system is the largest direct and indirect employer in the United States.
Keywords: food marketing, food industry, consumer focus, food production, food consumption
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