What's New
Funding Supports Research on Food Industry Competitiveness
June 3, 2011
Researchers in the Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) and the College of Management and Economics (CME) at the University of Guelph have received $200,000 from OMAFRA’s New Directions Research Program to study the competitiveness of Ontario’s food manufacturing industry. In collaboration with food industry stakeholders, they will examine what drives competitiveness in the Ontario, Canadian and global economies.
Enhanced competitiveness of the food industry strengthens the economic resiliency of rural Ontario as well as the ability of producers, processors and others within the agro-economy to invest in the best practices in environmental and food safety and infrastructure. The three-year study will provide recommendations tailored to each type of organization based on its degree of control or influence on the drivers.
“Understanding competitiveness requires a mix of economics, management and public policy expertise that our team is uniquely qualified to provide for this important project,” says principal investigator Erna van Duren, a professor in the Department of Business.
OAC has a long history of leading research and providing solutions to the challenges that confront the agriculture and food sectors in Ontario, and in particular the issues related to food production, supply, and security, which are among the greatest societal challenges of our time.
Myles Frosst, visiting scientist in the School of Environmental Sciences, notes that this research program is a collaborative one from start to finish, and in support of OAC’s goal of transformational learning, the research will also involve undergraduate research experience.
“Faculty and students from OAC and CME will be using a combination of standard and novel quantitative analysis techniques, case studies and consultation with industry leaders, from both individual companies and industry associations,” Frosst says. “As well, they are contributing to and harnessing the research results from other institutions.”
Students will learn how to assess the impact that the policy environment can have on corporate performance and develop practical and innovative policy suggestions. A legacy of this initiative will be improved capacity of graduates, whether they apply their expertise in government or in business to help shape public policy that supports the agriculture and food sectors’ ability to profitably and sustainably grow market share.
Stakeholders will be engaged in the discovery of the challenges and opportunities of a more competitive Ontario food manufacturing sector. And stakeholders will be able to share the results of the research and consequent policy prescriptions through conferences and other KTT communications instruments including social media.
“The end result will be providing government and industry with a roadmap towards enhanced agriculture and food sector competitiveness,” says Frosst. "As importantly, if not more so, the University of Guelph is training students to assess the impact that the policy environment can have on corporate performance and to make practical and innovative policy proposals."
In addition to van Duren and Frosst, the team of researchers includes, from OAC, Maury Bredahl (Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics); and from CME, Elliot Currie (Business); and Mike von Massow (Hospitality and Tourism Management). The three-year study will provide recommendations for industry tailored to each type of organization based on its degree of control or influence on the drivers.
The New Directions Research Program aims to stimulate the sustainable growth and competitiveness of Ontario’s agriculture and food sector by investing in innovative research through collaborations with industry, rural communities, and government and research institutions.
