Publications

06 May 2019
Research & Ideas

Consumers Blame Business for Global Health Problems. Can Business Become the Solution?

Every public health crisis—whether it’s the availability of highly addictive opioids or junk food marketing to children—prompts consumers to question how far companies will go for profit. It’s not an... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost; Health

01 May 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, May 1, 2018

https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/product/718039 Harvard Business School Case 517-064 Note on the Impact of Millennials on the Food System In 2016, the millennial generation (those age 19 to 35 in 2016), the largest generation by... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

July 2019
Case

LaCroix Sparkling Water

By: Tomomichi Amano, Das Narayandas and Kerry Herman

Launched in 1981 as an “all occasion” sparkling water brand, LaCroix Sparkling Water has had a number of ups and downs as a brand. After being purchased by National Beverage in 1996, the brand was re-positioned as a new, colorful, fun alternative to the other sparkling... View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Industry Structures; Food and Beverage Industry

23 Apr 2014
HBS Case

Are Electronic Cigarettes a Public Good or Health Hazard?

When electronic cigarettes first appeared a little over a decade ago, they were hailed by many as a godsend: a tool to help smokers quit while mitigating the most harmful effects of tobacco. "The [e-cigarette] market is producing, at... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Food & Beverage; Food & Beverage

Article

Positioning Brands Against Large Competitors to Increase Sales

By: Neeru Paharia, Jill Avery and Anat Keinan

We explore the effect of having a large dominant competitor and show the conditions under which focusing on a competitive threat, rather than hiding it, can actually help a brand. We demonstrate through lab and field studies that highlighting a large competitor's size... View Details

Keywords: Brands; Brand Management; Brand Positioning; Competitive Positioning; Brands and Branding; Marketing; Marketing Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

Find at Harvard

June 2011
Teaching Note

Cola Wars Continue: Coke and Pepsi in 2010 (TN)

By: David B. Yoffie

Teaching Note for 711462. View Details

Keywords: Industry Structures; Competitive Strategy; Competition; Price; Brands and Branding; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

18 Mar 2008
First Look

First Look: March 18, 2008

this result and assessing how future work in this field should proceed, based upon these first steps in measuring "design." Download the paper: http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/08-039.pdf Modeling Expert Opinions on Food... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

17 Apr 2007
First Look

First Look: April 17, 2007

http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu/b01/en/common/item_detail.jhtml?id=806069 Disney Consumer Products: Marketing Nutrition to Children Harvard Business School Case 507-006 In an effort to capture market share in... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

October 2005 (Revised February 2007)
Case

Ripe 'n Ready

By: Ray A. Goldberg and Laura Winig

Stoned fruit has quality variations, reducing consumption. Five independent growers formed a cooperative to provide quality control and a brand name--Ripe 'N Ready--that enabled retailers to differentiate their stores and producers to differentiate the products they... View Details

Keywords: Quality; Brands and Branding; Competitive Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry

03 Feb 2009
First Look

First Look: February 3, 2009

development of entrepreneurial regions and industries. But these efforts are challenging. Governments cannot dictate how a venture market will evolve, and "top-down" efforts are likely to be unsuccessful. The same common flaws... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

September 1974 (Revised April 1975)
Case

Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc. (B)

A consumer attitude survey involving more than 1,000 cranberry users has been conducted. Multivariate statistical procedures including factor analysis, cluster analysis and multiple discriminant analysis have been employed to suggest four attitude segments in the... View Details

Keywords: Surveys; Product Positioning; Mathematical Methods; Consumer Behavior; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

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; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Brazil; Latin America; Argentina; Uruguay; North America; United States; Europe; Asia; China

November 2009 (Revised May 2010)
Case

Red Tomato: Keeping It Local

By: Jose B. Alvarez, Mary Louise Shelman and Laura Winig

This case describes the operating model and history of Red Tomato, a non-profit organization dedicated to branding and logistical support for locally grown produce farmers in the northeast U.S. The case highlights the challenges involved in making locally grown produce... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Trends; Food; Local Range; Consumer Behavior; Logistics; Supply Chain; Nonprofit Organizations; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Northeastern United States

January 2025
Case

Barilla: Feeding the Future

By: Sophus A. Reinert, Forest L. Reinhardt, Dante Roscini and Carlota Moniz

Keywords: Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Italy

11 Aug 2014
HBS Case

The Business of Behavioral Economics

You've done everything—endured diets, purged your freezer of Ben & Jerry's, and educated yourself on fat, sugar, and calories. Yet, you can't manage to lose weight. What's wrong with you? According to standard economic theory, which gives humans (perhaps too much)... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Food & Beverage; Food & Beverage

July 2022
Case

FIJI Water: Carbon Negative? (Abridged)

By: Michael W. Toffel, George Serafeim, Francesca Gino, Stephanie Van Sice and Tom Quinn

In the midst of increasing press scrutiny of the bottled water industry’s environmentally harmful practices, FIJI Water made a series of sustainability promises. The boldest of these was a pledge to go “carbon negative.” The company said that not only would they offset... View Details

Keywords: Carbon Footprint; Carbon Offsetting; Environmental Accounting; Climate Change; Environmental Sustainability; Pollution; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Misleading and Fraudulent Advertising; Non-Governmental Organizations; Brands and Branding; Food and Beverage Industry; Fiji; United States

January 2017 (Revised February 2018)
Case

Godiva Japan: Think Local, Scale Global

By: Rohit Deshpandé, Esel Cekin and Akiko Kanno

This case tracks Jerome Chouchan’s strategies and execution for a successful turnaround of Godiva Japan’s operations, which were experiencing a decline in sales when he became the managing director of the company in 2010. Through various initiatives and innovations,... View Details