How Can East European Food Industries Learn from Those in the West?

Abstract

Should the former Soviet bloc countries look to Western food industries in their efforts to supply adequate food and offer choice? Three groups of consumer are emerging with widely differing purchasing powers. Currently only the privileged elite can expect choice and quality at a West European level. Principal errors so far have been the institution of selective remedies at individual parts of the food chain rather than tackling it as a whole. While Eastern Europe can learn from the historic transition of the West – which took three centuries – it must compress the time it takes to put this into practice. It is likely that the most advanced countries will become mirror images of Western food industries, driven by the involvement of strong retail forces from the West. In the CIS, development will revolve around management efficiency and will be far less driven by consumer power. No one system, not even a Western model, can provide the answer for all the countries. The solution may be an amalgam of old and new systems to suit each country′s circumstances and ambitions.

Citation

Lyle, I. (1993), "How Can East European Food Industries Learn from Those in the West?", British Food Journal, Vol. 95 No. 7, pp. 40-43. https://doi.org/10.1108/EUM0000000002378