Publications

February 2022 (Revised April 2024)
Case

Aleph Farms: A New Culture of Meat

By: Elie Ofek and Jeff Huizinga

Aleph Farms, an Israeli food-tech start-up, was hoping to play a major role in disrupting the conventional meat sector. Compared to intensive agricultural practices, Aleph’s cultured (or lab-grown) meat solution held the promise of considerably reducing greenhouse gas... View Details

December 2015 (Revised February 2017)
Case

BRF

By: David E. Bell and Natalie Kindred

In 2015, BRF's new leadership team is transforming several aspects of the Brazilian protein giant, which had grown sluggish after the 2011 merger that created it. Underlying their reforms are the common goals of reducing bureaucracy, streamlining decision making, and,... View Details

June 2013
Supplement

Jamba Juice (B)

By: J. Bruce Harreld and Christian Karega

James White, the new CEO of Jamba Juice, has successfully averted bankruptcy and must now decide the future path for Jamba Juice, the leader in the smoothie and fresh bar industry. This two-part case presents the various strategic options White is considering. It then... View Details

Keywords: Beverage Industry; Turnarounds; Strategic Change; Strategy Execution; Turnaround; Consumer Marketing; Franchising; Food Retail Franchising; Strategy; Leadership; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

November 2018 (Revised May 2019)
Case

Almarai Company: Milk and Modernization in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

By: Kristin Fabbe, Safwan Al-Amin, Esel Cekin and Natalie Kindred

With SAR 14 billion ($3.7 billion) in 2017 revenues, Almarai was Saudi Arabia’s largest dairy producer, distributor, and marketer, with a large portfolio of branded dairy products, juices, bakery goods, and infant formula and a sales presence across the Gulf region,... View Details

February 2019 (Revised September 2019)
Case

Theranos: The Unicorn That Wasn't

By: Joseph B. Fuller and John Masko

In 2003, 19-year-old Elizabeth Holmes founded a startup dedicated to making blood testing easier and more affordable. By 2015, her company, Theranos, was worth $9 billion. It boasted a star-studded board and contracts with national pharmacy and supermarket chains... View Details

Keywords: Theranos; Blood; Lab Testing; Fraud; Holmes; Balwani; Shultz; Carreyrou; Securities And Exchange Commission; Food And Drug Administration; FDA; SEC; Health Testing and Trials; Corporate Accountability; Organizational Culture; Misleading and Fraudulent Advertising; Crime and Corruption; Entrepreneurship; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

January 2020 (Revised April 2020)
Teaching Note

Brandless: Disrupting Consumer Packaged Goods

By: Jill Avery

Brandless, an online direct-to-consumer seller of upscale private-label consumer packaged goods (CPG), offered consumers a limited assortment of values-conscious products delivered directly to their homes with the simplicity of one fixed $3.00 price point that promised... View Details

Keywords: Brand; Brand Management; DTC; Private Label; Groceries; Packaged Food; Personal Care; Startups; Retailing; Amazon; Brands and Branding; Marketing; Marketing Strategy; Business Startups; Disruption; E-commerce; Consumer Products Industry; Retail Industry; United States

September 2013
Case

Advanced Leadership Pathways: Laurent Adamowicz and Bon'App

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Juliane Calingo Schwetz and Patricia Bissett Higgins

After a successful career as Chairman and CEO of Paris-based luxury food company Fauchon, Laurent Adamowicz sought to reduce obesity and improve health outcomes. Adamowicz created a mobile application to provide consumers with more accessible and interpretable... View Details

Research Summary

Sustainable Operations

Professor Lee studies how operational synergies between different supply chains can be used to create economic value and improve environmental sustainability. She uses an operational lens to approach sustainability problems, focusing on the management of material flow... View Details

Keywords: Environment; Environmental Operations; Sustainability; Operations Management; Operational Disruptions; Supply Chain; Supply Chain Management; Food Security

31 May 2017
Sharpening Your Skills

10 Harvard Business School Research Stories That Will Make Your Mouth Water

Food used to be just sustenance, but now it's news. The president of the United States falls for McDonald's and KFC. In Portland, resentment is growing over white street vendors who sell ethnic foods. Ikea is starting a View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Food & Beverage

02 Jun 2020
Research & Ideas

Coronavirus Careers: Cloud Kitchens Are Now Serving

As restaurants shuttered during social lockdowns in March and April, food delivery soared. An increasing number of those deliveries originated from recently established “cloud kitchens.” More remarkable, most of the restaurants left... View Details

Keywords: by Lena Ye and Geoffrey Jones; Food & Beverage

14 May 2018
News

Amazon vs. Whole Foods: When Cultures Collide

February 2019
Case

Al Islami Foods: Partnering for Growth

By: Lynda Applegate and Michael Norris

In 2018, Al Islami Foods CEO Marwan Al Garem and Chairman Saleh Saeed Lootah have to decide on a potential investment partner. They hope to find the best match for a strategic investment in their Dubai-based halal foods company from a list of three global food... View Details

Keywords: Animal-Based Agribusiness; Investment; Partners and Partnerships; Strategy; Food; Growth and Development Strategy; Ownership Stake; Business Model; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Dubai

October 2012
Case

Monsanto

By: Ray A. Goldberg

Monsanto CEO Hugh Grant must guide his global agribusiness technology company into an uncertain future where food security, food safety, sustainability, and climate change will all impact the global food system. View Details

Keywords: Technology; Risk and Uncertainty; Information Technology; Food; Social and Collaborative Networks; Global Strategy; Agribusiness; Globalized Markets and Industries; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry

09 Jun 2022
HBS Case

From Truck Driver to Manager: US Foods’ Novel Approach to Staff Shortages

In 2021, US Foods faced a problem that has become all too familiar: As thousands of Americans re-evaluated their work lives in the middle of the pandemic, the company—one of the largest food service... View Details

Keywords: by Pamela Reynolds

December 1980 (Revised February 1998)
Case

McDonald's Corp. (Condensed)

By: W. Earl Sasser and David C. Rikert

Describes the operating system of McDonald's, the world's most successful fast food chain. The case does not have a decision focus; it is designed for use with Burger King Corp. Students are asked to compare the operating systems of these two fast food hamburger... View Details

Keywords: Service Operations; Competition; Food and Beverage Industry

December 2000 (Revised January 2001)
Background Note

Promise of Functional Foods, The

By: Ray A. Goldberg, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Laure Mougeot Stroock

This case presents a definition of functional foods or nutraceuticals (food or food ingredients that could provide a health benefit beyond the traditional nutrients they contain), a description of some of the major obstacles to their commercialization and... View Details

Keywords: Food; Private Sector; Public Sector; Health; Product Development; Production; Commercialization; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

Find at Harvard

December 1995 (Revised March 1996)
Case

Nestle and the Twenty-First Century

By: Ray A. Goldberg and Elizabeth Ashcroft

A leading food company rethinks its future in the global food system by major geographical areas. View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Forecasting and Prediction; Geographic Location; Globalization; Strategy; System; Food and Beverage Industry

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February 2022
Case

US Foods: Driving Post-Pandemic Success?

By: David E. Bell, Olivia Hull and Amy Klopfenstein

In November 2021, US Foods CEO Pietro Satriano must decide his company’s trajectory following the COVID-19 pandemic. US Foods suffered due to business closures and social distancing during the height of the pandemic. While the situation improved following the return of... View Details