Overview
As incomes have risen in many countries during the past
few decades, consumers have begun purchasing fewer staples
(like rice and wheat) and more high-value food items (such
as meat, dairy, pasta, and frozen vegetables). Global
sales of high-value products have been growing, with sales
increasing by a quarter since 1998. Food suppliers have
responded to this expanding consumer demand by importing
high-value foods from around the world. Moreover, food
manufacturers have invested in processing facilities in
many host countries. The choice to import or produce locally
depends on the nature of the product, trade and domestic
policy issues, and other factors affecting transaction
costs. Global food markets have become more competitive
and trade in high-value products has slowed as more high-value
products are produced locally. More
overview...
Features
Converging Patterns in Global Food Consumption and Food Delivery Systems (February 2008) reports that across countries and income levels worldwide, consumers are choosing to spend their additional income on some combination of increased quality, convenience, and variety of foods. Food delivery systems and consumption patterns in middle-income countries like China and Thailand are converging, or "catching up" to countries with higher income levels. Income growth has been a primary force behind converging global consumption patterns, but globalization of the food industry is also contributing. For the full report, see Convergence in Global Food Demand and Delivery (March 2008).
Processed
Food Trade Pressured by Evolving Global Supply Chains (February 2005) reports that many factors affect the choice of locations
to produce and sell food products. Patterns of food trade
are strongly influenced by the changing nature of competition
in the global food industry—from shifting consumer
preferences to the growth in multinational food retailers
and the ways they manage their global supply chains. Consumer-driven
changes are increasingly pushing food suppliers to meet
consumer demand and preferences at a local level, even
as the food industry becomes more global.
Recommended Readings
New Directions in Global
Food Markets (February 2005) describes how consumer preferences drive
changes in global food supply chains, including the growth
in private-label sales and expansion of multinational
retailers and manufacturers in developing countries. This,
in turn, can lead to local processing of some food products
rather than an increase in overall food trade.
Market Access for High-Value
Foods (February 2005) examines how existing multilateral trade rules
may favor trade in raw commodities at the expense of processed
products, identifies changes in food trade patterns and
shifts in U.S. comparative advantages, and evaluates the
impact of uniformly reducing global tariffs as a way of
improving market access.
Changing Structure of
Global Food Consumption and Trade (June 2001) explores factors
underlying shifts in global food consumption patterns
and the composition of world agricultural trade. Higher
incomes, diet diversification, and increasing demand for
higher quality and labor-saving products are among the
factors that influence food consumption and trade.
See all recommended readings...
Recommended Data Products
International
Food Consumption Patterns database estimates food
budget shares and income and price elasticities, using
1996 data, for 9 major consumption groups and 8 food subgroups
across 114 countries. The depth and breadth of these data
provide an opportunity to incorporate the elasticities
into research on changing food demand patterns.
Foreign Agricultural Trade of
the United States (FATUS) provides U.S. agricultural
export and import data, volume and value, by country,
by commodity, and by calendar year, fiscal year, and month,
for varying periods, such as 1935 to the present or 1989
to the present.
Agricultural Market Access
Database (AMAD) provides data and information on World
Trade Organization (WTO) member countries regarding tariff
schedules, tariff bindings, applied tariff rates, import
quantities, notifications to the WTO on countries' commitments,
and other data useful in analyzing market access issues
in agriculture.
The ERS Agricultural Exchange
Rate Data Set contains annual and monthly data for
exchange rates important to U.S. agriculture. It includes
both nominal and real exchange rates for 80 countries
(plus the European Union), as well as real trade-weighted
exchange rate indexes for many commodities and aggregations.
WTO Agricultural Trade Policy Commitments
Database contains data on implementation of trade
policy commitments by WTO member countries. Data on domestic
support, export subsidies, and tariffs are organized for
comparison across countries. This queriable database offers
various options for viewing and downloading data.
Glossary
Definitions of terms used
in this briefing room and links to other online glossaries
that provide additional information about global food
markets.
Related Briefing Rooms
Food Marketing System in the U.S.
European Union
Global Food Security
U.S. Agricultural Trade
Related Links
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations,
FAOSTAT, is an online
database with international statistics covering production,
trade, food balance sheets, forest and fishery products,
population, and food-aid shipments.
U.S. International Trade
Commission offers information
on U.S. tariffs and U.S.
trade data by HTS code, Customs District, and month.
Census
Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce provides a description
of total U.S. trade and export classifications.
See all related links...
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