DURING the recent evokeAG. 2024 conference, a panel was held on the price takers and price makers in the food and agribusiness sector, with a focus on the economic forces shaping the agri-food supply chains.
The panel was facilitated by Tim Hunt, principal Tim Hunt consulting, Melbourne, Victoria.
He was joined on stage by Pecora Dairy co-founder Cressida Cains, Michigan State University professor Philip Howard, Whole co-founder and chief executive officer, Nick Stamatiou and Geraldton Fishermen's interim chief executive officer, Leith Teakle.
The panel began with Mr Hunt painting a picture of the current price taker and price maker relevant to the audience.
"We're asked at the moment to produce food for a rapidly expanding population," Mr Hunt said.
"At the same time, the climate is making food production more difficult, it's a daunting task."
Mr Hunt opened the discussion by asking the panel whether there is an issue with equity in the food supply chain.
Professor Howard said yes, comparing the food system to the shape of an hourglass.
"The top of the hourglass is millions and millions of farmers, ranchers, food harvesters, and the bottom of the hour glass is billions of people eating food," professor Howard said.
"In between much of that food is distributed by a very small number of firms.
"So you have this choke point in the middle of the glass that's getting smaller all the time; governments have failed to stop mergers and acquisitions and they've become more powerful, and they've shaped it to their favour, making it less equitable."
Professor Howard said the most dramatic example of this in the US was the chicken industry, where farmers, workers, processors were using the equipment owned by major companies, a pretext to squeeze them out of a decent share of the profits.
Mr Teakle spoke of his fishing co-operative, saying "our position in the market is to connect the fisherman to the customer".
From hook to plate, and with few people in between, means the price is affected, he said.
He also offered some thoughts on where many co-operatives go wrong, like members making investments that run counter to the cooperative's original objective.
Mr Hunt then directed a question from the audience to Mr Stamatiou.
"How do you see technology as a contributor to fighting greenwashing?" he said.
"When we talk about price maker and price taker, what it comes down to is giving the sustainable competitors an advantage," Mr Stamatiou said.
Professor Howard said although the technology for fighting greenwashing started off with democratisation as a feature, when it is acquired by larger corporations, that intent is not a priority.
In the panel's final minutes, Mr Hunt asked the panel to summarise a core message.
"For the audience of innovators, producers, investors, government regulators, what is the one thought you'd like them to leave with," he said.
Ms Cains simply said, "please buy Australian cheese," to appreciative laughter.
Professor Howard said even though in the short-term he was pessimistic, in the longer term he sees the possibility of a more equitable future for the price takers.
