Changes in the U.S. Food Marketing System

The U.S. food marketing system is characterized by improved efficiency, increased concentration and fundamental changes in the relationships between buyers and sellers in a recent report by the Economic Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The 95-page report, The U.S. Food Marketing System, 2002: Competition, Coordination and Technological Innovations into the 21st Century (Agricultural Economic Report No. 811), can be downloaded from the ERS website at www.ers.usda.gov. It was written by J. Michael Harris, Phil R. Kaufman, Steve W. Martinez and Charlene Price