To stay competitive, dairy, produce, meat, poultry and pork suppliers are looking for mergers and alliances, and weaker companies are being purchased or are going out of business. Pundits predict that the companies supplying grocery stores must become either major suppliers or niche players catering to the 5 to 7 percent of the population willing to pay top dollar for their food. Some food producers are concerned about the consolidation, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Federal Trade Commission and Congress are investigating. Recent consolidations have even prompted federal legislation to prevent meat processors from owning live cattle. However, don't expect Congress or federal agencies to restructure the marketplace.
Consolidation is a fact of life throughout our economy, and seafood is no exception.
Predicting where the marketplace will take our industry is a challenge. Not surprisingly, the USDA reports that the pork, turkey and beef sectors are following poultry's lead and are integrating. Seafood's future in the grocery stores is less clear. Most producers and processors are relatively small firms, often family owned, and most serve local and regional markets. Only a few have the volume and variety of products to market nationally or internationally.