Publications

03 Mar 2014
HBS Case

Decommoditizing the Canned Tomato

in the canned goods aisle of a stateside supermarket? That's one of the questions Mary L. Shelman, director of Harvard Business School's Agribusiness Program, explores in the case study Mutti S.p.a., coauthored with colleagues Senior... View Details

Keywords: by Maggie Starvish; Agriculture & Agribusiness; Agriculture & Agribusiness; Agriculture & Agribusiness

2008
Working Paper

The Cost of Property Rights: Establishing Institutions on the Philippine Frontier Under American Rule, 1898-1918

By: Lakshmi Iyer and Noel Maurer

We examine three reforms to property rights introduced by the United States in the Philippines in the early 20th century: the redistribution of large estates to their tenants, the creation of a system of secure land titles, and a homestead program to encourage... View Details

Keywords: Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Rights; Property; Business and Government Relations; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Philippines

Read Now

03 Jun 2008
First Look

First Look: June 3, 2008

association, fair pay practices) and whether these codes have affected their business outcomes (e.g., staff turnover and absenteeism, product defect rates, sales growth). In this paper, we review the existing evaluations of other private... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

27 Aug 2013
First Look

First Look: August 27

the high-tech group, and spend time with family. Purchase this case: http://hbr.org/search/913420-PDF-ENG Harvard Business School Case 913-406 Nestlé: Agricultural Material Sourcing Within the Concept of... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

08 Mar 2016
Research & Ideas

Solving an Economic Mystery Surrounding Argentina and Chile

of Buenos Aires’s population was foreign born, and it could be regarded as one of the world’s greatest global cities.” Today, the city is a decaying shadow of itself and Argentina as a whole has fallen prey to ineffective institutions, inconsistent government... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

November 2010 (Revised December 2010)
Case

Mid-Missouri Energy: Ethanol from Corn

By: Forest L. Reinhardt, Noel Michele Holbrook, James Weber and Karla Sartor

Mid-Missouri Energy (MME) is a farmer-owned cooperative that produces ethanol from corn. The cooperative has performed well in comparison to other producers, but margins in the industry had declined as industry production levels neared market demand limits. MME farmers... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Renewable Energy; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Policy; Growth and Development Strategy; Cooperative Ownership; Business and Government Relations; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; United States

30 Mar 2010
First Look

First Look: March 30

outcomes salient (Burns & Corpus, 2004), the bias did not emerge when the presentation did not draw attention to recent outcomes. Fixing Health Care on the Front Lines Author:Richard M.J. Bohmer Publication:Harvard Business Review 88,... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

July 1989
Supplement

Merger Negotiations Between Farmland, Cenex, and Land O'Lakes (C)

By: Ray A. Goldberg

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry

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; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Dubai

May 2020
Teaching Note

Bayer Crop Science

By: David E. Bell, Michael Norris and Mel Martin

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 520-055. View Details

Keywords: Plant-Based Agribusiness; Research and Development; Mergers and Acquisitions; Consolidation; Innovation and Invention; Strategy; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Technology Industry; United States; Germany

September 1990 (Revised December 1990)
Case

Privatizing the Mexican Sugar Industry/Grupo Beta San Miguel

By: Ray A. Goldberg

Keywords: Privatization; Business and Government Relations; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Mexico

February 1985 (Revised September 1988)
Case

Caterpillar Tractor Co.

By: Christopher A. Bartlett

Describes the structure and evolution of the earth moving equipment industry worldwide in the post war era, particularly focusing on developments in the 1960s and 1970s. Describes Caterpillar's strategy in becoming the dominant worldwide competitor (industry market... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Business Strategy; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry

August 2023 (Revised January 2024)
Supplement

Arla Foods: Data-Driven Decarbonization (A)

By: Michael Parzen, Michael W. Toffel, Amram Migdal and Susan Pinckney

Arla implemented a data-based price incentive system to measure, track, and influence climate friendly changes to reduce CO2 emissions across the world’s fourth largest dairy cooperative. View Details

Keywords: Dairy Industry; Business Earnings; Earnings Management; Environmental Accounting; Agribusiness; Animal-Based Agribusiness; Acquisition; Mergers and Acquisitions; Decision Making; Decisions; Voting; Environmental Management; Climate Change; Environmental Regulation; Environmental Sustainability; Green Technology; Pollution; Moral Sensibility; Values and Beliefs; Financial Strategy; Price; Profit; Revenue; Food; Geopolitical Units; Global Strategy; Ownership Type; Cooperative Ownership; Performance Efficiency; Performance Evaluation; Problems and Challenges; Natural Environment; Science-Based Business; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Cooperation; Corporate Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Europe; United Kingdom; European Union; Germany; Denmark; Sweden; Luxembourg; Belgium

December 2022 (Revised February 2023)
Case

Marfrig's Quest for Sustainable Beef

By: Jose B. Alvarez, Pedro Levindo and Ruth Costas

Marfrig, one of the world’s leading meatpackers, strived to comply with its commitment to have a deforestation-free value chain in Brazil by 2030. The company also pledged to reduce its emissions of greenhouse gases in accordance with the guidelines set by the... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Animal-Based Agribusiness; Plant-Based Agribusiness; Acquisition; Family Business; Communication Strategy; Environmental Management; Climate Change; Environmental Regulation; Environmental Sustainability; Bonds; Food; Global Strategy; Goods and Commodities; Government and Politics; Political Elections; Leading Change; Marketing; Product Marketing; Product Positioning; Supply Chain; Supply Chain Management; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Business and Government Relations; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Partners and Partnerships; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Diversification; Expansion; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Brazil; Latin America; Argentina; Uruguay; North America; United States; Europe; Asia; China

October 1996 (Revised January 1997)
Case

DJF Farms 1996

By: Ray A. Goldberg and David Ehlis

Keywords: Family Business; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry

January 2009
Teaching Note

Bunge: Food, Fuel, and World Markets (TN)

By: Tarun Khanna, Santiago Mingo and Jonathan West

Teaching Note for [708443]. View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Sales; Integration; Globalized Markets and Industries; Developing Countries and Economies; Competition; Business Model; Trade; Performance Efficiency; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; New York (state, US); Brazil; India; China

02 Jan 2018
Op-Ed

'Dear Working Knowledge'--Our Favorite Reader Comments of the Year

They are often born of deep business experience, delivered with great style, wit, and humor. Here are some of our favorite comments in 2017. Some have been edited for clarity. Want to be Happier? Spend Some Money Avoiding Household Chores... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

December 2006 (Revised August 2008)
Case

Keggfarms (India): Which Came First, the Kuroiler(TM) or the KEGG(TM)?

Vinod Kapur has founded a unique enterprise, Keggfarms, based on a special poultry chicken he bred to address the nutritional and income needs of some of the poorest people on earth: India's rural villagers. As of November 2006, Keggfarms was supplying chicks to about... View Details

Keywords: Animal-Based Agribusiness; For-Profit Firms; Social Entrepreneurship; Competition; Expansion; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; India