Differentiation and branding of fresh pork products have created interest in the potential for swine producers to invest further up the pork supply chain to capture a greater share of the consumer's dollar. However, the ultimate success of producer-owned ventures will depend on their ability to identify market opportunities and execute merchandising strategies to maintain sales of a perishable and seasonally variable pork product in a commodity market environment. To better understand the competitive issues in pork marketing on a small scale, three firms already engaged in direct marketing of fresh pork products are examined and reported as case studies.

Traceability can link the identity of cattle feeders with retail beef cuts. The economic problem for the packer implementing traceability is to choose the level of investment in traceability and the level of incentive payments to cattle feeders so that cattle feeders will avoid production actions that can damage retail beef cuts. A case study of injection-site lesions in cattle is the basis for technical parameters to numerically solve this principal-agent problem. Results show that cattle feeders will give injections in sites preferred by the packer even with low rates of successful tracking and minimal incentives. Copyright 2008, Oxford University Press.

No abstract

No abstract