Publications

Awards

John Kenneth Galbraith Medal

By: Michael E. Porter

Awarded the 2005 John Kenneth Galbraith Medal by the American Agricultural Economics Association (AAEA) for his “breakthrough discoveries in economics and outstanding contributions to humanity through leadership, research, and service.” View Details

28 May 2020
Video

2020 Class Day Distinguished Alumni Speakers

December 2006 (Revised October 2007)
Case

Embrapa

By: David E. Bell and Mary L. Shelman

Brazil's national agricultural research corporation, Embrapa, has developed an integrated crop and livestock production system that will allow farmers and ranchers to intensify production and improve profitability. Broad adoption of the technology would provide the... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Policy; Business and Government Relations; Environmental Sustainability; Technology Adoption; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Brazil

01 Jul 2013
News

Family of the Late Boston Businessman William F. Connell Donates $10 Million to Harvard Business School

December 2008 (Revised February 2017)
Case

Olam International

By: David E. Bell and Mary Shelman

In 20 years, Sunny Verghese had built Singapore-based Olam International from a small Nigerian export company into a $5 billion global leader in agricultural commodities with a core competence in Africa. Olam's growth had come by pursuing product and geographic... View Details

Keywords: Financial Crisis; Trade; Growth and Development Strategy; Supply Chain; Expansion; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Africa; Singapore

January 1994 (Revised August 1994)
Case

Ocean Spray Cranberries: Environmental Risk Management

By: Richard H.K. Vietor

Ocean Spray Cranberries, one of the nation's most successful agricultural cooperatives, faces some difficult environmental management problems associated with water usage and wetlands development. Because of federal and state wetlands laws, new bogs for expansion had... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Innovation and Invention; Risk Management; Cooperative Ownership; Environmental Sustainability; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry

30 Jun 2016
News

Humanities seem distant from startups, but they're not

November 2019 (Revised January 2020)
Case

Bayer Crop Science

By: David E. Bell, Damien McLoughlin, Natalie Kindred and James Barnett

In mid-2019, a year after German conglomerate Bayer Group closed its acquisition of U.S.-based seeds giant Monsanto, the leadership of Bayer’s Crop Science division (which absorbed Monsanto) is reflecting on the opportunities ahead. Some observers have questioned... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Research and Development; Innovation and Invention; Innovation Strategy; Mergers and Acquisitions; Consolidation; Customer Value and Value Chain; Change Management; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Technology Industry; United States; Germany

03 Apr 2014
HBS Seminar

Michael Kremer, Harvard University

31 May 2012
News

With Gavilon gone, Asia grain traders face tougher climb

April 2014
Teaching Plan

Beidahuang

By: Ray A. Goldberg and David Lane

This teaching plan is designed to support the teaching of Beidahuang, HBS No. 914-412, rev. March 2014. Beidahuang is a major new Chinese player in global grain trading that in 2013 is seeking access to grain both to help assure China's food security and in pursuit of... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Sourcing; Beidahuang; S; Plant-Based Agribusiness; Supply Chain Management; Trade; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Brazil; China

November 2000
Case

WARDA: Leading a Rice Revolution in West Africa

By: Ray A. Goldberg, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Cate Reavis

The West Africa Rice Development Association, along with various national and international partners, was developing and transferring new rice technologies to farmers throughout West and Central Africa. While production in West Africa was growing faster than any other... View Details

Keywords: Private Sector; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Policy; Government and Politics; Technological Innovation; Leadership; Performance Effectiveness; Problems and Challenges; Research and Development; Nonprofit Organizations; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Africa

Find at Harvard

Video

Helmy Abouleish

Helmy Abouleish, CEO of the SEKEM Initiative, describes the group’s early days as his father first established the groundwork for biodynamic agriculture and an “economy of love” in the Egyptian desert. View Details

February 2019
Background Note

Mexican Farmworkers in the United States

By: Forest Reinhardt and Jonathan Schlefer

This note discusses the centuries-long history and current situation of Mexican farmworkers north of the border—documented or undocumented, resident or temporary, and increasingly indigenous. The story provides the background for discussion of dilemmas facing... View Details

Keywords: Migrant Farmworkers; Mexican Farmworkers; Agribusiness; Labor; History; Policy; Problems and Challenges; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; United States

Video

Helmy Abouleish

Helmy Abouleish, CEO of the SEKEM Initiative, shares how the group worked with the Egyptian Ministry of Agriculture during the early 1990’s to drastically reduce the use of hazardous pesticides in the Nile Delta region. View Details

November 2004
Case

Deere & Company

By: Ray A. Goldberg and Hal Hogan

John Deere & Co. wants to improve shareholder value and provide incentives to do so. The task is difficult in a volatile agriculture and construction industry. It also wants to be more global and provide machinery that traces commodities from the field to the consumer. View Details

Keywords: Factories, Labs, and Plants; Volatility; Machinery and Machining; Multinational Firms and Management; Goods and Commodities; Goals and Objectives; Strategic Planning; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry