Innovation by Food Companies Key to Growth and Profitability

Consumers today are demanding an increasingly wide variety of foods, retail formats, and restaurant concepts. Food manufacturers, distributors, retailers, and foodservice operators face additional demands as they strive to profitably supply the large variety of goods and services on time and in the correct quantity. The task facing the food industry is neither easy nor cost-free. Some food firms are responding to the challenge by making innovative operational changes, reshaping how they work together with other members of the food supply chain and how they organize themselves as individual companies. Most notably, many food retailers are working more closely with distributors and manufacturers to best serve the consumer. Also, many individual firms at each stage of the supply chain are adjusting the size and scope of their operations.