Rice Or Hamburger?

Studies have show that emerging economies take up a "Western" style of food consumption as their per capita rises. Giving huge bonuses to companies like Kraft, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and many more. According to economist Ron Trostle, counties in the range from 3,000 to 10,000 in per capita are likely to processed foods, the amount rising as the per capita amount does as well, of course. In the past though with economic crisis throughout the world, these emerging markets would typically resort back to their staple product. For example there was a crisis in Southeast Asia in 1997 and that year the people resorted back to eating and using more traditional foods that were locally grown and produced- rice! Chief executive of Cargill, a U.S. agribusiness, Gregory Page says that this year the market has not seen this trend. He seems hopeful for the coming decade for the agribusiness stating, "global economic growth in the 2010-2020 period would be above the 1990s average, but below the "supercharged by the liquidity spree" rate of the 2000s." Let's hope Mr. Page is correct and the rest of the economy has as hopeful of an outlook as agribusiness does.

Submitted by: Emily Schaub